Tiger traps found in Kanha national park

Injured beast raises questions over protection at the park

MUMBAI: Kanha national park in Madhya Pradesh has caught the eye of poachers. Known to be among the better managed parks in the country, its reputation could now come under a cloud.

Five steel traps were recently recovered here even while the authorities tried their best to guard the secret. However, the cat was literally out of the bag when a team of tourists spotted a tiger whose front left paw was badly hurt.

It was later revealed that the animal had been in the clutches of a steel trap
but had managed to set itself free.

There was a lot of drama associated with the incident. The tiger had apparently spotted some labourers while it was struggling to break free from the trap. It became so worked up seeing them that it ended up getting free.

Sources say that there was no way this could have been made public except that the tourists saw the animal limping and realised that something was terribly wrong.

Debi Goenka of the Bombay Environmental Action Group said, "Recovery of steel traps from the core area is a serious matter which has put a big question mark on the levels of protection."

The fear is that there could be more traps hidden in the park. "The tiger which managed to free itself was fortunate but others could have been trapped. No one knows if the poachers have killed any tiger in the park," he added.

Director of Project Tiger, Rajesh Gopal confirmed the news to DNA and said changes were being made in the park's administration.

Sources say that the future of the tiger in India hangs in the balance. Poachers have managed to find loopholes everywhere and the fact that Kanha has become their latest target only means that the worst is yet to come.

For the sake of the tiger, every animal lover is keeping his fingers crossed.