Tigress Rani escapes from Buxa enclosure in West Bengal for second time

Kolkata: Days after being traced to Assam and brought back, Royal Bengal tigress ‘Rani’ has escaped again from Buxa Tiger Reserve in West Bengal’s Alipurduar district, Forest Department officials said on Monday.

A few days ago, the tigress was brought back from Assam with much fanfare following her first escape. However, less than five days later, she escaped from Buxa forest again, evading surveillance.

A search operation has been launched to trace the tigress. Meanwhile, a red alert has been issued.

The incident dates back to September 27, when a three-year-old tigress from Bihar’s Valmiki Tiger Reserve was tranquillised and airlifted to Hasimara Air Force Base in Alipurduar on September 30. The airlift was carried out by an Mi-17 helicopter of the Indian Air Force. After landing at Hasimara Air Force Station, two wildlife doctors and tiger experts examined the tigress’s physical parameters for more than an hour. She was then taken by road to Buxa Tiger Reserve.

The initiative was part of a plan to increase the tiger population in north Bengal and establish a permanent tiger population in Buxa forest.

On October 5, Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav announced that the Royal Bengal tigress had been released into the forest. Later that month, the tigress escaped, crossing the Sankosh River into Assam’s Raimona National Park.

Initially, the Forest Department decided not to interfere with the tigress’s natural movement. However, concerns later arose over her presence near human settlements and the safety of domestic animals.

West Bengal Forest Minister Manoj Kumar Oraon himself travelled to Assam to oversee the operation to bring the tigress back.

Finally, on November 3, the West Bengal and Assam Forest Departments jointly conducted an operation in Assam’s Kokrajhar district, using three elephants to surround the tigress. After an operation lasting about two hours, she was tranquillised and brought back to Alipurduar in a transport crate before being placed in an enclosure. However, on Sunday afternoon, the tigress escaped from the enclosure again.