Tiger found dead in canal in MP's Balaghat district
Bhopal: A carcass of a tiger was found floating in a canal of an inter-state water project in Madhya Pradesh's Balaghat district, neighbouring Maharashtra, an official said on Saturday.
The carcass was found floating in a canal of Rajiv Sagar project at Khadagpur village of Balaghat district's Waraseoni tehsil on Friday, the official said.
Photographs of the stripes of the sub-adult big cat will be sent to forest officials in Maharashtra for identification, Madhya Pradesh additional principal chief conservator of forest (Wildlife) J S Chauhan said.
"We are going to send a picture of the stripes of the sub-adult (18 to 24 months) tiger to our Maharashtra counterparts to identify if he belonged to that state, as Nawegoan-Nagzaria Tiger Reserve in Bhandara and Gondia districts was not far from the spot," Chauhan said.
Officials will also study the stripes of the tiger to ascertain if he belonged to MP, as parts of the Kanha Tiger Reserve fall in Balaghat district, he added.
It is easy to identify tigers, as their stripes are recorded in cameras, which are installed to photograph them during tiger census in the state, the official said.
A post-mortem is being conducted to ascertain the exact cause of death, he said, adding the big cat's body parts were intact when he was found and there were no external injuries.
Water from the Rajiv Sagar project is shared by Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, the official said.
