Territorial Battle Leads to Death of Tigress in Madhya Pradesh
Investigation into Tigress's Death
Bhopal, May 30: A post-mortem examination of a ten-year-old tigress found deceased in the Panna Tiger Reserve of Madhya Pradesh has indicated that her demise was due to injuries from a territorial dispute.
Initially, the circumstances surrounding the tigress's death raised concerns; however, forest officials confirmed that their investigations revealed no indications of poaching or any illegal activities.
The carcass was located on Wednesday evening in the Umrajhala area of the Devendranagar range within the North Forest Division of Panna.
Forest department personnel, Pahalwan Singh Gond, discovered the lifeless tigress and promptly alerted the beat guards about her condition in the Kurian Haar region.
Upon receiving the notification, forest officials, along with local beat guards and security staff, arrived at the scene to initiate an investigation.
To aid in the inquiry, a dog squad from the Panna police department and another from the Satna forest division were called in.
District Forest Officer for the North Forest Division, Garvit Gangwar, stated that after a comprehensive investigation, no signs of poaching, poisoning, or illegal activities were detected. The preliminary findings suggest that the tigress likely died from injuries sustained during a territorial confrontation with another tiger or tigress.
The tigress was found deceased on Wednesday evening, and following a thorough search with the dog squads, a post-mortem was performed on Thursday.
Samples have been sent to a laboratory for further analysis to confirm the findings.
The post-mortem was conducted by wildlife doctor Sanjeev Gupta and a veterinary expert from Devendranagar to ascertain the precise cause of death.
The body of the tigress was disposed of under the supervision of senior forest and police officials.
In the meantime, surveillance cameras have been installed in the vicinity to collect additional information through monitoring footage.
Authorities are optimistic that the data from these camera traps will provide clarity regarding the incident.
Madhya Pradesh has recorded 24 tiger fatalities in 2025, making it the state with the highest number of tiger deaths in India this year.
In 2009, the Panna Tiger Reserve faced scrutiny when it had no tigers left, despite once housing over 40 big cats. Currently, the reserve is home to around 80 tigers.