Baripada: Tigress Zeenat, who captured national attention with her adventurous escape from Similipal Tiger Reserve, is set to return to her original habitat tonight after a brief stay at the Alipore Zoo in Kolkata. The three-year-old big cat underwent thorough medical examinations in Kolkata before beginning her journey back to Odisha, escorted by a team from the West Bengal Forest Department.
Similipal Tiger Reserve’s Field Director, Prakash Chand Gogineni, confirmed that Zeenat would be placed in a soft enclosure upon her arrival in the reserve’s southern division. “After studying her activities, the next steps for her reintegration into the wild will be decided,” he stated.
Zeenat’s odyssey began earlier this month when she escaped from Similipal and traversed over 200 kilometers, crossing into Jharkhand and then West Bengal in search of a new territory. Her journey, marked by encounters with villagers and evasion of forest guards, ended on December 29 in Bankura district, where she was tranquillized and captured. Following her capture, the tigress was taken to Kolkata’s Alipore Zoo for medical evaluation, where blood and stool samples were collected, and her health was closely monitored by a dedicated medical team.
Originally brought to Similipal from Maharashtra’s Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve in November 2024, Zeenat was part of a genetic diversification program aimed at strengthening the tiger population in Similipal. Her escape and subsequent journey raised concerns about her well-being and sparked discussions on tiger conservation protocols.
The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) questioned the decision to temporarily house Zeenat in the Alipore Zoo instead of directly translocating her back to Odisha. In a letter to the West Bengal government, the NTCA sought clarification, emphasizing that Zeenat’s relocation to Similipal was a critical initiative to enhance the genetic diversity of the reserve’s tigers.