VISAKHAPATNAM: A tiger was spotted on the ghat road near Sapparla in GK Veedhi mandal of Alluri Sitharama Raju (ASR) on Sunday morning. A video of the tiger crossing the road, captured by one of the commuters, Ramana Murthy, went viral on social media platforms.
The driver of the Donkarayi-Paderu RTC bus and the passenger, Ramana Murthy, spotted the big cat on the road around 6.10 am on Sunday. The driver immediately stopped the bus. The bus proceeded only after the tiger disappeared into the forest.
“As soon as we saw the tiger, we closed the windows of the bus, fearing it would come inside. The tiger strolled in front of the bus for a few minutes and disappeared into the forest,” recalled Ramana Murthy, an employee with Darakonda govt hospital.
“Though I traversed the ghat road for the past eight years, I spotted a tiger on the ghat road for the first time on Sunday. Since I was sitting in the front side of the bus, close to the driver seat, I got the chance to record the video of the tiger crossing the road on my phone,” Ramana Murthy added.
The motorists on the ghat road stretch are fearing for their safety due to the tiger’s movement. The police and forest officials have alerted villagers to be cautious.
Meanwhile, tiger movement was reported in Chintoor mandal of ASR district a few months ago. Since GK Veedhi is close to Chintoor-Papikonda National Park (PNP), the tiger was believed to have come out of its natural habitat.
Speaking to TOI, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Chintapalle, YV Narasimha Rao, said they saw the video of the big cat crossing the road. He confirmed the tiger movement on the ghat road and said forest department teams are on the job to record the pugmarks of the tiger.
Villagers in the nearby locality in GK Veedhi mandal have been advised not to venture out of their homes after sunset. The motorists have been advised to drive extremely carefully while passing through the ghat road.
It may be recalled that a tiger was seen by one motorist at Birasadavalasa of Mentada mandal in Vizianagaram district on April 12, 2022. The tiger killed one cow on April 26, 2022, between S Kota and Gantyada Mandals in Vizianagaram district. Later, there were incidents of cattle killings in Kakinada, Anakapalle, and Vizianagaram districts in the state.
A tiger was spotted in north Andhra Pradesh districts in 2022 after three decades as the forest department found the pugmarks of a tiger in 1997 during the tiger census at Palakajeedi-Matham Bhimavaram area in the Visakhapatnam district tribal belt.
Nalla Ram Babu is a Special Correspondent, at the Times of India-...
Read MoreNalla Ram Babu is a Special Correspondent, at the Times of India-Visakhapatnam. He reports on crime, rural development, road transport, Indian Navy, sea food industry, weather, research in agriculture, legal, civic issues and data-driven stories. He holds postgraduate degree in journalism & mass communication.
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