Adult male tiger set for reintroduction into wild

The transient adult tiger, native to central India, is set to get a new lease on life as the expert committee of the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) decided to reintroduce it into the natural landscape on Tuesday, February 10, 2026.

Highly placed sources told Hindu Tiger conservation experts in India have unanimously decided that the big cat should be returned to the forest as it should no longer be confined to the Animal Rescue Center (ARC). In ARC, the tiger will face the threat of being subjected to ‘human imprinting’, which can alter its emotional response and behaviour. The decision in which forest they will be released will be made by the relevant authorities within a few days.

Experts, who determined the fate of the male tiger in brainstorming sessions that lasted two days, concluded that he was ‘innocent’ as he had not attacked any humans during his 53-day stay in four states (Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh) where he walked over 650 kilometers in search of ‘prey’.

On February 6, staff from Rajahmundry Wildlife Management and experts from Pune-based RESQ Trust tranquilized the tiger at Kurmapuram village in East Godavari district before transporting it to ARC in Visakhapatnam.

Operation STRIPS

The historical operation in which the tiger was tranquilized in human settlements without causing any harm was called ‘Striped’. According to State Forestry Ministry sources, the operation will continue until the tiger is released back into the wild. Hindu.

The operation is seen as a new dawn in the history of tiger conservation in Andhra Pradesh as it ended without any harm to humans, frontline staff or the big cat.

“The operation would not have been successful without the support of local communities,” said frontline staff involved in the operation. Tiger conservationists, wildlife experts of Andhra Pradesh, welcomed NTCA’s decision to reintroduce the tiger into the wild and claimed that the initiative would pave the way for tiger conservation in Andhra Pradesh.