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Published 14:32 IST, December 28th 2023

VIRAL: Fresh image of Royal Bengal Tiger taken via trap cameras at 10,509-feet-high | PIC

Kalimpong: Neora Valley National Park is recognized as the home of several other endangered wildlife species, including clouded leopard and Himalayan red panda.

Reported by: Pritam Saha
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Royal Bengal tiger spotted at Rachela Danda, in Neora Valley National Park of Kalimpong | Image: Bengal forest Department
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At an elevation of more than 10,000 feet, trap cameras set in the Neora Valley National Park in Kalimpong in November of this year captured brand-new images of royal Bengal tigers. The state forest department's representatives have written to the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) in response to the images, requesting funding for the big cat's conservation and habitat preservation. "The images have once again demonstrated that tigers exist in Neora Valley. The park is situated within the Gorumara wildlife division. "We are writing to NTCA for funds so that the park, which is a virgin forest, can be conserved and protected in a better way," the divisional forest officer stated.

A taxi driver named Anmol Chhetri took image of a tiger in January 2017 while traveling between Pedong and Lava. Experts at the time said that a tiger had been sighted in north Bengal after at least fifty years. The sighting prompted foresters to take action, and they set out to install trap cameras around the park in the higher regions of the Kalimpong district. 22 images of tigers were captured from various perspectives using trap cameras in the park region between 2018 and 2022. A tiger picture taken by a trap camera that the Zoological Survey of India had set up was discovered in 2019 by a research team visiting the park.

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This time, pictures were taken at the park's 10,509-foot-high Rachela Danda section. The park is recognized as the home of several other endangered wildlife species, including the clouded leopard and the Himalayan red panda. It is bordered by the Toorsa Strict Forest Reserve in Bhutan and the Pangolakha Wildlife Sanctuary in Sikkim.

14:29 IST, December 28th 2023