Overview
- Forest teams say a camera trap captured a Bengal tiger in the Khara block of Paonta Sahib on Monday, providing the first concrete photographic evidence of a big cat in that part of Sirmaur district.
- Follow-up inspections found fresh claw marks, pugmarks and territorial signs spread across about 500 hectares, indicating the tiger has been using the area repeatedly over several days.
- Officials from Rajaji National Park have been notified and a specialised team is scheduled to inspect the site and run stripe‑pattern comparisons to determine whether the animal dispersed from Rajaji.
- Himachal Pradesh forest authorities have expanded the camera‑trap grid, formed a dedicated monitoring task force and advised nomadic Gujjar and Gaddi shepherds to avoid the Khara block to reduce disturbance and risk.
- The sighting highlights functioning landscape connectivity in the Shivalik foothills and could lead to a formal push for tiger‑reserve status for Paonta Sahib; Bengal tigers are listed as Endangered and protected under Schedule I of India’s Wildlife (Protection) Act.