Overview

• Farmers discovered a two-year-old male tiger and a stray dog trapped in a roughly 15-foot-deep composting pit at a cardamom plantation near Kadukkacity on June 8.
• A forest department team secured the shaft with an iron grill and used tranquilliser darts to subdue both animals, administering a second dose to the tiger after the first proved insufficient.
• Veterinary officers led by Periyar Tiger Reserve assistant officer R. Anuraj removed porcupine quills from the tiger’s face and administered an anti-rabies vaccine.
• After confirming that neither animal was injured, officials released the dog on site and transferred the tiger to Periyar Tiger Reserve for release into deep forest.
• The operation follows a fatal tiger attack on a rubber tapper in Malappuram on May 15 and underscores persistent human-wildlife conflicts along plantation borders.