On Thursday Supreme Court has ordered a status quo about the relocation of T24 tiger from Ranthambore National park. As a forest guard, Rampal Maliwas, was mauled to death by the tiger this month was being shifted from wild to internment as there was pressure from tourism lobby that was nearby the national park. Justice A K Sikri who headed the bench, said that on 28 May this matter was put before Rajasthan High Court and further told that there will be status quo regarding shifting of the tiger until the High Court says anything further. When the Rajasthan government shifted the tiger T24 known as Ustad, a petition was filed against its relocation to Sajjangarh Biological Park in Udaipur from Ranthambore. At present the T24 has been kept in a 10,000 square feet arena in that park.
Ustad was accused of eating human but there was no evidence of it. The guard was killed by it as he was encroaching its territory. It was stated in the PIL that the shifting of Ustad was not as per law and against Wildlife Protection Act. Forest department said that Ustad will be kept under captivity.
In Sajjangarh Biological Park, a month back a tiger which was 7 years old had died because of infection due to rats. This 9 year old tiger was accused of killing few more men, 23-year-old Ghamandi Lal Saini, 19-year-old boy and an assistant forester, in 2010 and 2012. Tiger was tranquilized and sent in cage on a 11 hour journey to the biological park. On that day the temperature was 40 degree Celsius so there was huge stock of ice and water was being put in the cage to keep the tiger cool. 12 reserve officials and doctors had accompanied the tiger. The Forest department had moved the tiger stating that the tiger had become a man eater and had killed nearly 4 people in 5 years. Many wildlife activist were shocked with this incident as they were assured by the government that Ustad would not be moved from its place without a proper investigation. It was said that Rajkumar Rinwa, Minister of state for Forest and Wildlife, was not informed about this act and was kept in dark as CMO had intervened in this directly.
by Sushma Javare.