Ranchi: Panic gripped a village in Jharkhand’s Ranchi district on Wednesday morning after an adult Royal Bengal Tiger entered a farmer’s house and got trapped inside a room. The tiger was later rescued successfully by forest officials, who tranquilised and caged the animal before shifting it to Ranchi’s Birsa Zoo.
The incident occurred in Mardu village, located in Silli block near the West Bengal border, about 65 km from Ranchi city. The area falls under the jurisdiction of the Muri police outpost.
“The tiger entered the house of one Purandar Mahto around 5 am when he stepped outside after opening the door of the house,”
said Ranchi Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Srikant Verma to PTI.
The tiger walked into one of the rooms of the house, after which Mahto locked the door from outside, preventing the animal from escaping.
“Two girls aged around eight years were also inside the house when the tiger entered, but they managed to exit safely,”
Verma added.
A rescue team from the Palamau Tiger Reserve was immediately dispatched and launched a well-coordinated operation to tranquilise and capture the big cat.
“It was tranquilised after being caged. It was loaded on a vehicle and will be taken to Ranchi’s Birsa zoo where it will be kept under observation,”
the DFO said.
If the tiger is found to be in good health after examination, it may be released back into the wild — most likely the Palamau Tiger Reserve, although no final decision has been made yet, Verma added.
A team from Bhagwan Birsa Biological Park (Birsa Zoo) also reached the location to assist with the operation.
“A veterinarian, compounder and a biologist were sent to the site to provide their expertise,”
said Ashok Kumar Singh, Assistant Conservator of Forests at Birsa Zoo.
“The tiger was rescued successfully and its health condition appears to be good. A thorough examination of the animal will be done,”
said zoo veterinarian Dr. O. P. Sahu.
To ensure a smooth operation, prohibitory orders were imposed within a 200-metre radius of the house, Verma informed.
Officials suspect that the tiger may have strayed in from nearby forests in West Bengal, particularly Purulia district, which is adjacent to Mardu village and has large forest areas.
“We suspect that the tiger has come from adjoining West Bengal. The village is very close to the inter-state border and there is a large forest in Purulia district,”
Verma said.
Recalling the early morning drama, house owner Purandar Mahto shared:
“I woke up around 4.30 am and asked my daughter to take the cattle out of the shed. Suddenly, a big animal entered the house. It was roaring and I understood it was a tiger. I safely took another girl, one of my relative’s daughters who was sleeping, out of the house and locked the room.”
Mahto immediately contacted a relative, who then alerted local authorities. Thanks to their quick response and coordinated efforts, a potential tragedy was averted.