📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / Vulpes-bengalensis
Science
West Bengal starts first tiger relocation from Bihar to Buxa, tourism paused 4 days
✍️ The Indian Express
🗓 30 Sep 2026, 06:16 PM
👁 12
The West Bengal forest department has begun its inaugural tiger relocation, moving animals from Bihar to Buxa Tiger Reserve, and has imposed a four‑day ban on tourist entry to the area.
The forest department of West Bengal announced the launch of its first-ever tiger relocation programme, shifting a group of tigers from a sanctuary in Bihar to the Buxa Tiger Reserve in the state’s northern hills. The operation, coordinated with wildlife officials from both states, aims to bolster the breeding population in Buxa and reduce pressure on the source habitat.
The relocation involves careful capture, sedation and transport of the animals under the supervision of trained wildlife veterinarians. Once released, the tigers will be monitored through radio collars to assess their adaptation and movement within the reserve.
To ensure a disturbance‑free environment during the critical acclimatisation phase, the department has ordered a four‑day closure of tourist facilities around Buxa. Entry to the reserve’s core zones will be barred from Monday to Thursday, after which normal visitation will resume.
Officials said the project forms part of a broader strategy to create a network of viable tiger habitats across the eastern corridor, complementing similar efforts in other states. Successful relocation would demonstrate the feasibility of inter‑state wildlife transfers as a tool for species conservation.
The relocation involves careful capture, sedation and transport of the animals under the supervision of trained wildlife veterinarians. Once released, the tigers will be monitored through radio collars to assess their adaptation and movement within the reserve.
To ensure a disturbance‑free environment during the critical acclimatisation phase, the department has ordered a four‑day closure of tourist facilities around Buxa. Entry to the reserve’s core zones will be barred from Monday to Thursday, after which normal visitation will resume.
Officials said the project forms part of a broader strategy to create a network of viable tiger habitats across the eastern corridor, complementing similar efforts in other states. Successful relocation would demonstrate the feasibility of inter‑state wildlife transfers as a tool for species conservation.