Overview
- Investigators say illegal opium cultivators poisoned a rewilded, radio-collared tiger to keep forest patrols away from their hidden crop.
- Patrols first found a poisoned bull with its ears cut off, then uncovered the buried tiger and a burned tracking collar in the same forest stretch.
- Police seized 6,148 opium plants weighing 194.5 kg, registered NDPS cases, and arrested five suspects named by officials, including Udesingh.
- A 24-day signal blackout from the collar prompted activists to seek a forensic audit, after some officials suggested satellite interference could explain the lapse.
- Police said they are examining links to a wider narcotics network following the arrests and seizure.