A tigress and her four cubs were found dead in Karnataka’s Male Mahadeshwara (MM) Hills Wildlife Sanctuary in Chamarajanagar district, raising serious concerns about poisoning.
The deaths that happened under unusual circumstances have shocked the top officials of the state forest department. It is being told that they died after eating poisoned meat of a dead cattle. The forest department patrol team found these dead tigers in the forest during a routine check on Thursday.
Officials and wildlife activists suspect that the tigress must have killed the cattle first and then someone must have mixed poison in its carcass.
State Forest Minister Bhimana Khandre has ordered the formation of a team of senior forest officials and independent wildlife expert Sanjay Gabbi to investigate the matter.
Following the discovery, Karnataka Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre directed the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) to conduct an inquiry and submit a detailed report within three days. Preliminary investigations suggest the animals may have died after consuming meat laced with toxic substances.
“The preliminary probe has revealed that the tigress and cubs have died unnaturally,” Minister Khandre said. “If negligence by forest staff is proven, disciplinary action will be taken against them. If this incident is confirmed to be the result of poisoning, I have instructed the officials concerned to register criminal cases against those involved.”
The forest area has been immediately cordoned off and declared a protected zone. Standard Scene of Crime (SoC) protocols have been enforced, with a 500-metre radius being scanned and secured for evidence collection.
Veterinarians conducted their postmortem and collected blood, stomach and tissue samples, which have been sent for toxicology and DNA tests.
Most of the villagers in the area where these tigers were found leave their cattle in the forest for grazing. There have been many cases of cattle being killed by tigers and leopards in this area.
Wildlife activist Joseph Hoover said, "It is suspected that someone angry at the killing of his cattle may have mixed poison in its carcass."
According to Hoover, farmers in Tamil Nadu often leave their cattle with farmers in Karnataka for rearing.
With 563 tigers, Karnataka ranks second in terms of the number of tigers in the country after Madhya Pradesh.