Tiger movement creates panic at Polavaram project site in A.P.

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Movements of the tiger were recorded at Devaragondi village and near P. Regulator of the Polavaram project in the last two days. | Photo Credit: Representative photo

The tiger prowling in the forests of Eluru, East Godavari and other districts is creating a panic among the labourers engaged for work at the Polavaram project site.

The Forest Department officials, who tracked the animal, noticed that it moved to the Polavaram project-affected areas. Trackers suggest that the tiger was moving in the hillocks near Muttappakota, Itukalakota and other tribal habitations.

Movements of the tiger were recorded at Devaragondi village and near P. Regulator of the Polavaram project in the last two days, creating panic among the workers. Labourers, site officers and staff engaged for work at the twin tunnels and P. Regulator are now scared to attend to their duties.

The tiger killed a cow and a calf in the nearby vegetation. The forest officials recovered the carcasses. Veterinary doctors are treating another calf injured in the attack, the villagers said.

The forest officials visited the tribal habitations on Tuesday and interacted with the residents. The animal walked into the forests in Papikonda National Park and again returned to the tribal villages in Eluru district.

“Workers engaged at the twin tunnels and P. Regulator of Polavaram project have been told not to move alone or venture out during the night,” a Forest Department officer said. Labourers from Odisha, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Jhankhand and other States are engaged for works at various locations near the project.

Villagers have been cautioned against venturing into the forests and trekking hillocks in search of forest produce in the Polavaram project-affected villages or near the twin tunnels.

“We are monitoring the movements of the tiger constantly. But signals go missing when it goes into forests. Medical and rescue teams with the necessary support staff are camping in the forests to trap the tiger,” a Forest Department officer told The Hindu on Tuesday.

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