Kolkata, November 9, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Royal Bengal tigress ‘Rani’ has escaped again from Buxa Tiger Reserve in West Bengal’s Alipurduar district, less than five days after being brought back from Assam following her first escape, Forest Department officials said on Monday.
A search operation has been launched and a red alert issued to trace the tigress, who reportedly evaded surveillance after escaping from the enclosure on Sunday afternoon.
The three-year-old tigress was brought from Bihar’s Valmiki Tiger Reserve as part of a plan to increase the tiger population in north Bengal and establish a permanent tiger habitat in Buxa. She was tranquillised on September 27 and airlifted to Hasimara Air Force Base in Alipurduar on September 30 aboard an Indian Air Force IM-17 helicopter. After a medical examination by wildlife doctors and tiger experts, she was transported by road to Buxa.
Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav announced her release into the forest on October 5. Later that month, however, the tigress crossed the Sankosh River and entered Assam’s Raimona National Park.
The Forest Department initially chose not to interfere with her natural movement but later became concerned about her proximity to human settlements and the safety of domestic animals. State Forest Minister Manoj Kumar Oraon subsequently travelled to Assam to facilitate her return.
On November 3, a joint operation by the West Bengal and Assam Forest Departments in Assam’s Kokrajhar district used three elephants to surround the tigress. After an operation lasting around two hours, she was tranquillised, transported in a box to Alipurduar and placed in an enclosure.
However, she escaped from the enclosure again on Sunday, prompting fresh efforts to locate her.
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