Bhubaneswar: The male Royal Bengal Tiger spotted in Odisha’s Debrigarh Wildlife Sanctuary November 9 was previously recorded in Chhattisgarh’s Udanti-Sitanadi Tiger Reserve in 2025 and may have originally dispersed from Maharashtra, forest officials said Sunday.
Camera-trap images shared by Chhattisgarh forest authorities have confirmed the tiger’s identity through stripe-pattern analysis, establishing its presence in the neighbouring state before its arrival in Debrigarh, officials of the Hirakud Wildlife Division said.
Preliminary findings suggest that the tiger may have originally dispersed from Maharashtra. However, no camera-trap evidence is available so far to establish its earlier movement route, said Hirakud Wildlife Division Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Anshu Pragyan Das.
Debrigarh authorities have approached the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) for further information on the animal’s dispersal history, while analysis of additional camera-trap data is underway.
The tiger was first captured on camera and sighted by forest patrolling staff after entering the sanctuary through the Dechuan-Lakhanpur forest area in Bargarh district. It was subsequently spotted by tourists during a safari and later found to have hunted a deer in the sanctuary’s core area.
Following its arrival, the Forest Department installed 100 camera traps and deployed 27 teams for round-the-clock surveillance. Night, river and border patrolling have also been intensified, while police in Bargada and Sambalpur, local communities and informers have been alerted to guard against poaching and other threats.
The last tiger sighting in Debrigarh was reported in 2022. The animal had stayed in the sanctuary for around one-and-a-half years before moving to Chhattisgarh’s Gomarda Wildlife Sanctuary, where it reportedly died due to electrocution.
Spread over 900 sq km, including a core area of around 500 sq km, Debrigarh is known for its rich biodiversity. The Centre has approved the Odisha Government’s proposal to accord Tiger Reserve status to the sanctuary, with formalities for its declaration underway.