Kolkata: The adult male tiger that was finally tranquilised by the state Forest department after six days of intense efforts on Tuesday was released safely at Dhulibasini 4 compartment of Ramganga range in Sunderbans at 6.55 am on Wednesday.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee at the administrative review meeting at Gangasagar in South 24-Parganas announced that the forest officials and guards who were involved in this six days' long operation to catch the tiger that had sneaked into human territory will be awarded.
Banerjee lauded the efforts of the entire district administration, police, forest personnel and villagers who were involved in the operation.
"Our veterinary doctors closely monitored the big cat's health condition through out Tuesday after it was taken to Boney camp and found that it was 100 per cent fit to be released in the forest," Milan Mondal, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO), South 24-Parganas said.
According to sources in the Forest department around 100 guards and 120 labouers were part of the operation in tranquilising and caging the tiger in the operation that started on December 23 and ended on December 28.
The tiger according to Forest officials had been hiding in a dense bushy area at Dongajara- Mishrachowk area since Sunday.
A senior Forest official in the South 24-Parganas division pointed out that the netting created by them has been cut by fishermen at some places in their efforts to venture into the forest for catching crabs.
This had led to two back to back incidents of tiger entering into human habitat in this month itself.
"We have submitted a proposal to the department for preventing such incidents in future that includes deployment of boats with manpower for keeping a watch in these netted areas on the river banks and fencing the area which has remained still unguarded," the official added.