Tiger spotted at Andhra Pradesh-Odisha border; administration asks villagers to remain alert

SRIKAKULAM (Andhra Pradesh) [India], October 29 (ANI): The administration has asked villagers to remain alert after locals noticed a Tiger near the Andhra Odisha Border (AOB) regions, particularly the Gajapati district in Odisha and sections of the Srikakulam district in Andhra Pradesh.

Locals noticed that a tiger was roaming in the surrounding villages of Banjari Narayanapuram, Ammavari Puttuga and Mandapalli as the forest department officials were alarmed, they also found tiger footprints on the ridges of Mandapalli village.

After receiving the information District Forest Officer, Nisha Kumari with her staff inspected the fields around Banjari Narayanapuram, Ammavari Puttuga and Mandapalli.

Murali Krishna, the Deputy Range Officer in Kasibugga said, “Staff identified the footprints reported by the locals in the fields and confirmed that it was a tiger and seems to be a big one based on the footprints observed on the ridge.”

The public in Patapatnam, Meliaputti, and Mandasa mandals have been alerted to the situation. While there isn’t adequate shelter in the Kasibugga and Patapatnam forests for these large cats, they do have a dense and secure forest environment in Odisha,” added Murali Krishna.

The incident was first reported after the big cat killed a cow on October 19 in the Santoshipuram village, located in the Rayagada block of Gajapati district in Odisha. (ANI)