Royal return: Tiger sighted in Arunachal sanctuary after two decades

Dibrugarh: In a major boost to wildlife conservation efforts in the northeast, the D Ering Memorial Wildlife Sanctuary (DEMWS), near Pasighat, has officially recorded the sighting of an adult Royal Bengal tiger, after a span of more than 20 years.Captured through camera trap surveys, which were conducted with technical support from Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), the sighting carries significant importance, given the sanctuary’s troubled history with its tiger population.While officials confirmed the last tiger presence inside DEMWS was back in 2005, with only unverified sightings reported in 2007-08, a baseline survey published by the World Wide Fund for Nature in 2014 had painted a grim picture of the sanctuary, reporting zero pugmarks or camera trap evidence of tigers, citing rampant poaching as the likely cause of their absence.Although earlier surveillance rounds had failed to yield any proof of the big cat in the sanctuary, forest officials, over the past one year, had observed indirect signs suggesting possible tiger movement within the vicinity.Divisional forest officer Kempi Ete described the sighting ‘deeply moving’. “The return of the tiger, after nearly two decades, reflects the resilience of the ecosystem and the cumulative impact of sustained conservation efforts on the ground,” Ete said, crediting frontline forest staff, eco-development committees and local community organisations for their sustained role in protecting the landscape.Rajkamal Goswami of ATREE called the image a “historic photographic evidence” and expressed hope that the sighting will lead to renewed focus on scientific monitoring and stronger institutional support for the sanctuary.Mebo MLA, Oken Tayeng, while calling the tiger sighting a “healthy sign” of improved ecological conditions, added that it could boost tourism and create livelihood opportunities for the youth in fringe villages. His earlier proposal to reintroduce the rhino in the sanctuary has been included in the state budget by CM Pema Khandu as part of various other plans to develop DEMWS into a major biodiversity and eco-tourism destination.Besides the tiger sighting, the recent survey also documented the critically endangered Chinese Pangolin and the rare endangered Hispid Hare.