The Indian Air Force transported a three‑year‑old tigress from Valmiki Tiger Reserve in Bihar to Buxa Tiger Reserve in North Bengal aboard a C‑130J aircraft.
The relocation aimed to strengthen Buxa's tiger population. Three weeks after her release, the tigress crossed a river and roamed 25‑30 km into neighboring Assam, illustrating the on‑ground difficulties of such moves.
Conservationists point out that animal translocation often grapples with limited monitoring capacity, funding constraints, habitat quality issues, a lack of baseline data and insufficient public support.
