Buxa Welcomes First Tigress: India's New Push for Wild Tiger Comeback
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In a landmark move for India's wildlife conservation, a three-year-old Royal Bengal Tigress, named T138, was officially released into West Bengal's Buxa Tiger Reserve on October 2, 2026. This 'soft release', overseen by Union Minister Bhupender Yadav and Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, marks the exciting start of a new, phased Tiger Reintroduction Programme aimed at bringing back a thriving tiger population to Buxa, where resident tigers had disappeared decades ago. This ambitious project, part of the broader Tiger Augmentation and Recovery Project (TARP) since 2018, seeks to reverse years of ecological decline that led to local tiger extinction in Buxa by 2018. Efforts have focused on massive Habitat Restoration and Prey Base Augmentation, including releasing over 800 chital and restoring 380 hectares of grasslands, all while tackling serious Human-Wildlife Conflict challenges from surrounding settlements and vital Ecological Corridors being impacted by infrastructure. The successful integration of T138, translocated from Bihar's Valmiki Tiger Reserve, will rely heavily on continuous Telemetry Monitoring and camera trapping as she adjusts to her new home. Plans are already in motion to introduce an additional two to three tigers in the coming months, with the ultimate goal of establishing a Self-sustaining tiger population in this strategically important transboundary landscape, ensuring Buxa becomes a true tiger haven once more.