Tiger in cement factory in Chandrapur, forest on alert
A tiger’s sudden appearance in a remote cement factory has been keeping the forest department on its toes. For the last two days, the tiger has been seen prowling the roads within the factory area.
Officials claim that it is a dispersing tiger from the Chandrapur Super Thermal Power Station (CSTPS) and that the nearby factories and villages have issued an alert.
Earlier at Chandrapur Super Thermal Power Station (CSTPS), near to Chandrapur, two dispersing tigers were spotted. They had settled near Chandrapur and had recently moved out through the Irai River. The chief forest conservator (wildlife) issued orders to trap both tigers, taking into account the threat they posed to Chandrapur people.
It now appears that one of those tigers has begun to move ahead and entered the cement factory in Ultratech.
The cement factory is located more than 50 km away from the city of Chandrapur. But, as the crow flies, the distance between the two places could be some 25 km. In the 20 km periphery factories have no forest, but thick patches of plantation similar to CSTPS.
Truckers and police squad on the patrol saw the tiger prowling through the factory premises along the transportation lane. A few images of tigers prowling the roads within the grounds of the factory have gone viral on social media. Vansadi Forest Range Foresters have swung into action and issued a warning in the region.
Range Forest Officer SN Basanwar ratified the Tiger(s) presence but said they did not know their exact number or sex. In the track tiger movement, the department has installed eight camera traps.
“In the factory premises, we’ve intensified patrolling and are guiding people about preventive measures to be observed in such a situation,” he said. More than 40 foresters were deployed for surveillance and monitoring, he said.
However, SV Ramarao, the chief forest conservator (CCF), Chandrapur maintained that it is the tiger from the Super Thermal Power Station in Chandrapur. “The CSTPS tiger is likely to migrate away from Chandrapur city and have reached the premises of Ultratech. Our teams are on alert and monitoring the situation,” he said.
The CCF said they would try to drive the tiger out of the factory grounds, so it would be able to move forward on its journey. “Nevertheless, if the situation becomes volatile, we can trap the beast,” he said, claiming he already got the orders for it.
