Forest dept steps up search for tiger cub
22 Jun 2009, 0255 hrs IST, TNN
PANAJI: The forest department has stepped up patrolling in Vathadeo, a western suburb of Bicholim, after a resident claimed that he had spotted a tiger cub in the area.
“Taking cognizance of press reports about the sighting, we put men on the job to patrol the area,” a forest department official said. “Our staff has contacted the man who claimed to have sighted the cub, but as yet there is no confirmation or proof,” he added.
Patrolling continued for the third day on Sunday. “As a precautionary measure, we have asked our staff to continue patrolling the area,” the official said. After a couple of days of vigil in the area, the staff has not been able to sight the cub.
“It is possible that it may be a leopard,” sources said. However, the Vathadeo man claimed that it is a cub with stripes, characteristic of a big cat.
Vathadeo along the Bicholim-Mapusa road is not a forest area, but there is some greenery in the village and a river flows close by.
A few weeks back, forest department officials had been informed of the sighting of a tiger and a cub near Anjunem dam, barely 20 km from Vathadeo.
Meanwhile, the progress in the investigation of the tiger killing at Keri has been delayed as the forensic report of bones and other parts of the tiger sent to Dehradun for confirmatory tests, is yet to be received.
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