Midnight sighting triggers 50-member combing task

Mysore/Mysuru: A tiger was sighted by personnel of the Karnataka State Industrial Security Force (KSISF), which manages security at Mysore Airport. The big cat was spotted inside the Airport premises at Mandakalli late last night, following which the Forest Department launched a combing operation this morning to trace and capture the animal.

According to sources, the sighting occurred around midnight when the KSISF personnel were on routine patrol. They noticed an animal moving within the Airport premises.

When the personnel moved closer and flashed vehicle headlights towards it, they realised it was a tiger. The security staff immediately recorded a video of the animal on their mobile phones and shared it with the Airport authorities and Forest Department officials.

With the Tiger Census commencing today and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah scheduled to arrive at Mysore Airport this afternoon, Deputy Conservator of Forests (DCF) K. Paramesh, along with Forest staff, rushed to the Airport early this morning.

The team inspected the spot and advised Airport personnel not to move alone, while also cautioning them to remain alert and ensure safety.

Later, DCF Paramesh, accompanied by Range Forest Officer (RFO) Santosh Hugar, veterinarians Dr. Waseem Mirza and Dr. Adarsh, and personnel from the Leopard Task Force (LTF) and Elephant Task Force (ETF), numbering over 50, reached the Airport to carry out a combing operation. The tiger is believed to be a sub-adult.

Forest personnel deployed a drone camera to track the tiger’s movements and initiated an intensive search operation. However, there was no sighting or concrete clue regarding the animal’s whereabouts.

Officials suspect that the tiger may have moved out of the Airport premises and fled towards the nearby forest areas through the surrounding agricultural fields.

Forest teams subsequently extended the combing operation into the agricultural fields to confirm whether the tiger had exited the Airport region. However, no pug marks were found                         during the search.

The combing operation was still in progress when we went to the Press.