After a gap of two and half year, another tigress has been shifted to Western part of Rajaji National Park from Jim Corbett. This is part of Uttarakhand’s Tiger Relocation Project to re-establish the population of Tigers in Rajaji’s Western Zone i.e. Motichoor range.
The Eastern part of Rajaji i.e. Chilla Range, has over 40 tigers but Motichoor Range having a capacity of hosting over 80 tigers had none. The two zones are separated by a National Highway and a railway line which tigers found impossible to cross. That is why, forest officials decided to translocate tigers from Jim Corbett Tiger Reserve to Rajaji National Park.
After getting green signal from National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) in 2016, the first tigress was shifted to Eastern region of Rajaji in December 2020. This was followed by the translocation of another male tiger in January 2021. But, the pair has not mated during past three years, prompting the forest officials to introduce three more tigers to enhance chances of mating between them.
Translocation of a third tiger, a tigress, from Corbett to Rajaji is part of this plan only. The five-years old tigress was tranquilized in Corbett at 1.30 am on May 16, 2023 and shifted to Rajaji in a cage. The veterinarians are conducting medical tests to confirm whether it is a healthy tiger.
Director of Rajaji Tiger Reserve, Dr. Saket Badola said that the tiger is now kept in a soft-fenced enclosure of one hectare size. After the medical checkup and observation for around three days, this tigress will be released in the open forest.
Two more tigers – one male and a female – will be translocated to Rajaji from Corbett shortly as part of this project to populate Rajaji.
Incidentally, Jim Corbett Tiger Reserve is home to around 250 tigers while around 40 tigers straddle the Eastern Zone of Rajaji. Rajaji has the capacity to host more than 80 big cats and with this project it can recover its tiger population.
