Mumbai: The carcass of a tigress and her two cubs was found in Maharashtra's Chandrapur district Monday morning, an official from the state forest department said. The mother and her cubs were found dead near a drain in Metepur village under the Chimur forest range, the official said.
Apart from the tigress and her cubs, the partially-eaten carcass of a calf, too, was found in the area. The calf is suspected to have been poisoned. As such, there was speculation within the forest department that the tigress and her cubs, too, died of poisoning but the same has not yet been confirmed. “We suspect that they died of poisoning, however it is not confirmed. An inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of death,” said chief conservator of forests S.V. Ramarao.
According to forest officials, the cubs were around eight to ten months’ old. While a case of death by poisoning in Chandrapur is rare, earlier in 2018, two tigers died of poisoning at the Umred-Karhandla wildlife sanctuary located in nearby Nagpur. The Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve, which is home to a number of tigers, is located in Chandrapur district, which is around 680km from Mumbai.
