Telangana: Poaching continues to be threat for tigers in Adilabad

As per information provided by officials of Kawal Tiger Reserve (KTR), 17 tigers have gone missing from the forests of the erstwhile Adilabad district since 2013

Adilabad: Saturday’s arrest of three persons involved in the killing of a tiger has revealed that poaching remains a major threat to wild animals even as forest authorities are making efforts to sensitize stakeholders on the menace.

People belonging to certain communities dwelling in the countryside have been habitually indulging in the prohibited hunting of deer, wild sheep, rabbits and boars by setting iron or electrified snares at drinking water sources in the forests in summer. This practice has seen five tigers being electrocuted when they came into touch with the electrified snares in erstwhile Adilabad district from 2016 to 2023.

---

As per information provided by officials of Kawal Tiger Reserve (KTR), 17 tigers have gone missing from the forests of the erstwhile Adilabad district since 2013. Three of them were cubs of the famous Phalguna in Kagaznagar forests. Four of these missing tigers were poached. Whereabouts of the remaining tigers were not yet known, with officials suspecting that they were also killed by the electric snares.

“The habitual hunting of wild animals in rural parts is claiming lives of the tigers. However, the killings come to fore when the hunters trade articles,” an activist said.

Mancherial District Forest Officer Shiv Aasheesh Singh said awareness was being created among the public over conservation of tigers and the consequences of hunting wild animals. Cases were being booked against the habitual offenders. He stated that a robust intelligence system was created to check the menace, while surveillance was stepped up to prevent poaching of wild animals.