Tiger that killed woman in Asifabad showing peculiar behaviour, say officials

Officials said the tiger was moving in the plains and attacking humans only when it encountered them on its way in agriculture fields or if it was irritated by villagers who took photographs and videos.

Kumram Bheem Asifabad: Forest officials, who were monitoring the movement of the tiger that killed a woman and attacked a farmer in a gap of 24 hours in cotton fields here, said the tiger was showing a peculiar behaviour and was turning out to be quite an unpredictable tiger. Habitat stress is suspected to be one of the reasons.

“The behaviour of the tiger is strange and cannot be predicted. It is trying to enter the forests of neighbouring Maharashtra and is coming back to the forests of Telangana. It was sighted near Peddabanda and Itikalapahad villages in Sirpur (T) on Sunday. Its pugmarks were recorded near a tree,” a forest official who was part of a team which was monitoring the movement of the tiger said.

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The tiger, aged around 8 years, had trekked for around 20 km on a single day after killing the woman at Easgaon village in Kagaznagar mandal on Friday. It reached Dubbagudam village in Sirpur (T) mandal where it attacked Rauthu Suresh while he was working harvesting cotton on Saturday. It then moved near the borders of Telangana and Maharashtra on Sunday. It returned to the forests of Itikalapahad on Monday.

Officials said the tiger was moving in the plains and attacking humans only when it encountered them on its way in agriculture fields or if it was irritated by villagers who took photographs and videos.

The tiger from Painganga wildlife sanctuary in Yavatmal and Nanded districts of Maharashtra killed at least two cattle during its four-day long stay in the forests of Kagaznagar division. It returned from the neighbouring state when it failed to meet a female companion after travelling for 400 km recently. It, however, strayed again into the forests of Telangana and found a mate in the forests of Sirpur (T) range.

In November of 2020, a tiger titled A2 which developed aberrant behaviour caused by habitat stress had mauled to death Sidam Vignesh (23) at Digida village in Dahegaon mandal and Pasula Nirmal at Kondapalli village in Penchikalpet mandal in a gap of three weeks, triggering panic among locals. Forest officials had made an unsuccessful attempt to trap the tiger then.