A sub-adult tigress and a wild boar fell into a well after a chase by the predator went awry in the buffer area of Pench Tiger Reserve (PTR) in Madhya Pradesh’s Seoni district on Tuesday, according to a senior forest department official.
After a four-hour-long operation, the forest department successfully rescued the tigress, approximately three years old, and the wild boar from the well using a hydraulic machine, a senior official said. The incident took place near Hardua village in the Khawasa buffer area when the tigress pursued the wild boar, according to the reserve’s deputy director, Rajnish Kumar Singh.
The hunting chase went awry when the tigress slipped into the well. The wild boar also ended up in the same water body while attempting to escape the attack, Singh explained. After spotting the tigress struggling in the water, a cot was lowered into the well using a rope, and the wild animal climbed onto it, he added.
A rescue team used a hydraulic crane to lower a cage into the well and safely capture the tigress. The wild boar was rescued in a similar manner, according to Singh. Approximately 60 rescuers were involved in the operation to save both animals, as confirmed by the PTR deputy director. Madhya Pradesh’s Chief Wildlife Conservator has instructed that the tigress be released in the Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary under the Veerangana Durgavati Tiger Reserve in Sagar district, Singh added.