Tiger kills two cows in Jagtial; forest officials step up monitoring in north Telangana
HYDERABAD: A tiger that has been roaming across parts of northern Telangana for the past few weeks resurfaced in Jagtial district and killed two cows in the last two days, raising concern among farmers and villagers.
The big cat killed a cow near Gangaram thanda on the outskirts of Surampeta village in Kodimial mandal on Sunday night. It had killed another cow in the same village on Saturday night.
Movement across multiple mandals
Forest officials recently traced the tiger near the Rallavagu project on the outskirts of Konapur in Kammarpalli mandal of Nizamabad district.
Officials said the animal then entered Kathalapur mandal and moved towards the Thurthi forest areas through the Kalikota Suramma project. Teams confirmed its route after examining pugmarks.
The tiger has been roaming in the Kodimial forest areas for the past two days.
About a fortnight ago, farmers found pugmarks in agricultural fields near the Kalikota Suramma reservoir on the outskirts of Kalikota village in Kathalapur mandal.
Earlier attacks in nearby districts
On February 21, farmers noticed pugmarks near their fields in the Bandagutta and Maisamma temple areas.
A week later, the tiger reached the outskirts of Mothkuraopet village in Bheemaram mandal and attacked oxen. Forest officials said the animal fled after a large number of cattle raised an alarm.
The tiger had earlier moved through Rajanna-Sircilla district. On the night of February 16, it attacked four calves near the Thippapur hillocks in Ellanthakunta mandal. Three calves died, while another suffered severe injuries.
A week before that, the tiger killed cattle near Peddalingapur village.
Forest department issues advisory
Forest officials continue search operations and have installed trap cameras to track the tiger’s movement.
They advised farmers and villagers not to move alone at night. Officials also asked them to keep cattle close to their houses instead of leaving them near forest areas.
Villagers have been urged to alert the forest department immediately if they spot the tiger.
