A special investigation team has been established to examine the unexpected death of a tigress in buffer zone of the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve in Uttar Pradesh. The announcement was made by Arun Kumar Saxena,the state’s Forest Minister,on Monday,June 29, 2026. This team, consisting of wildlife experts and a veterinarian,aims to uncover circumstances surrounding the incident.
The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA),which oversees Project Tiger,has requested a comprehensive report detailing events leading to the tigress's demise. This follows a troubling series of events where tigress was involved in the deaths of two individuals,a 60-year-old farmer named Matadin on June 14 and a 40-year-old man named Kokila on June 15,in the Ramnagar area.
After a week of monitoring, forest officials tranquillized and captured the tigress on June 23. She recovered quickly from the tranquillization while still in the cage and was deemed fit for release back into the wild . However, later that evening,despite appearing normal throughout day,the tigress collapsed and died, prompting immediate concern among the authorities.
Minister Saxena stated that the investigation team would be led by Lalit Kumar Verma, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests,with A.P. Singh, the Additional PCCF,and veterinarian Utkarsh Shukla as members. He emphasized that the team would deliver its findings promptly,and any necessary corrective actions would be taken if lapses were identified.
In addition, Sanjay Kumar Pathak,the NTCA Member Secretary, confirmed that the authority has sought a factual report from the Uttar Pradesh government, specifically regarding adherence to the NTCA's standard operating procedures. The carcass of the tigress has been sent to the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) in Bareilly for further examination.
Preliminary findings from the post-mortem conducted by IVRI experts indicated that “haemorrhagic gastritis and severe parasitic infestation” were likely causes of death. However,the final report, which will include histopathological and toxicological analyses, is still pending . Officials noted that summer stress,potentially leading to hyperthermia,along with strain from capture,may have contributed to tigress's sudden death. This incident has raised alarm among forest authorities, particularly because tigress was lactating at the time.
