DNA analysis solves mystery of Borda tiger poaching case

On May 18, a tiger carcass was found butchered into 11 pieces, with its head and paws missing, from the forest under the Chandrapur Range. In September, these body parts were exhumed from compartment number 458 in Junona range under Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra.

Police had arrested four poachers from Jambhurla village on September 8 and seized four tiger claws along with 18 whiskers.

After interrogation, the accused revealed that they had poached a tiger in Junona range using wire snares. Further investigation led to the recovery of few bones and a tiger skull from the spot where the accused confessed to have buried the rest of its remains.

"Samples of the Borda tiger carcass and parts of a tiger recovered from Junona range were sent to the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology at Hyderabad for DNA analysis," said Deputy Conservator of Forests (Chandrapur Forest Division) P Kalyan Kumar.

The DNA analysis confirmed that the two samples belonged to the same tiger.

"Now, we need to investigate the motive behind dumping the carcass in the Chandrapur forest area as well as who were involved in transporting it from the spot of its poaching," Kumar said.

According to him, the accused confessed their involvement only in tiger poaching and not in transporting its body parts.