Tigress T138 released in Buxa, beginning West Bengal's first tiger reintroduction
2 October 2026
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari released a three-year-old tigress, T138, at Buxa Tiger Reserve in Alipurduar district on 2 October 2026. The tigress was brought from Valmiki Tiger Reserve in Bihar. Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav and Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary were present. This is West Bengal's first tiger reintroduction programme. Buxa was declared a tiger reserve in 1983 but had no resident tigers for years because of habitat degradation and a reduced prey base. Studies for the reintroduction were commissioned in 2018 and the work was carried out under a Tiger Augmentation and Recovery Project. The National Tiger Conservation Authority and the Wildlife Institute of India were associated with the programme.
In plain words
NTCA National Tiger Conservation Authority — The statutory body under the Union environment ministry that oversees Project Tiger and India's tiger reserves.
WII Wildlife Institute of India — A Dehradun-based research institute that advises governments on wildlife science and translocations.
Reintroduction Species reintroduction — Bringing a species back into an area where it once lived but has since disappeared.