Tiger killed in Chhattisgarh

RAIPUR - A tiger was found dead in Chhattisgarh with its head missing amid rising awareness across the globe to save the endangered big cats, an official said Tuesday.

The killing was reported from Amnia village, a forested zone under Kawardha, the home district of Chief Minister Raman Singh. The forest department has suspended two local forest offices and ordered an enquiry.

The forest department has asked its senior official Rakesh Chaturvedi to rush to the site, about 300 km from Raipur, to investigate the matter.

“Yes, a decomposed body of a tiger was found in Amnia village in Kawardha’s Pandaria block. Prima facie it looks the tiger was killed by a poacher several days or may be weeks earlier,” Chaturvedi told IANS on phone.

An official source here at the forest department headquarters said that a few officials tried to cover up the tiger’s killing by projecting it as a case of death. But when enough evidences emerged about the tiger’s death, they suspended the two local forest staff - a deputy ranger and a forest beat guard - and decided to order an enquiry.