MP's additional principle chief conservator of forest Dharmendra Negi is investigating the case even as various theories for the death of the 10-year-old feline on May 19 in the Tala Range of the reserve are doing the rounds. Reserve field director C K Patil has demanded a CID or CBI inquiry into the incident. “Patil has written to the state's chief wildlife warden R S Negi with such a request," the official said.
Soon after the incident, Mr Patil had said that “a tourist vehicle had hit the tigress after which she died. But it needs investigation". According to reports from the tiger reserve, the tigress was hit by a vehicle belonging to the state's PWD minister Nagendra Singh's son.
National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) member-secretary Rajesh Gopal said the post-mortem report confirmed that the tigress had died due to the impact. The tigress was being tracked by a lot of tiger watchers as she was nursing three new cubs. Mr Gopal said: “The authorities in Bandhavgarh have taken action against three officials and suspended them." Read the full report here.
Source: Economic Times, New Delhi
