RAIPUR: The tiger that killed two villagers and seriously injured a third person in the Surajpur district of Chhattisgarh was captured by forest officials after a five-hour operation involving trained Kumki elephants, an officer said.

“The feline, which bore injuries on her body, was tranquillized by forest department personnel while maintaining precautions and rescued at around 10 am, the state’s Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (Wildlife and Biodiversity Conservation) Sudhir Kumar Agrawal informed the media reporters.

A team of forest personnel, including veterinarians, launched a rescue operation early Tuesday morning while complying with the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) laid by National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), Agrawal said, adding that Kumki elephants were also roped in the task. The tigress will be shifted to Jungle Safari zoo in the state capital Raipur, he added.

As per details by Sanjay Yadav, district forest officer, the tigress was spotted in a gorge around 50 metres away fr the apot it attacked the men near Guru Ghasidas national park in the neighbouring Koriya district

The tiger attacked the villagers around 6 am Monday in a Surajpur forest area near Kalamanjan village when then men were going towards the forest to collect wood. One of them died on the spot. While the other two were immediately taken to the hospital. One seriously injured person was referred to Ambikapur Medical College where he was declared brought dead. The condition of one is stable in the district hospital at Surajpur.