Nagpur/Chandrapur: After days of mounting fear, anger and panic across forest villages in Chandrapur district, the Forest Department on Saturday evening finally captured tigress T-2, the big cat believed to be responsible for the brutal deaths of four women who had ventured into the Gunjewahi forest for tendu leaf collection.

The high-stakes operation, carried out under the Sindewahi forest range, ended with the tranquilisation and capture of the tigress in Pawanpar Beat under Compartment No. 282, bringing temporary relief to terrified villagers who had been living under the shadow of repeated attacks.

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The killings had triggered widespread outrage in the region, exposing once again the dangerous and often deadly reality faced by villagers living along forest fringes in Chandrapur, a district increasingly emerging as a flashpoint of human-animal conflict.

According to forest officials, special rescue teams had intensified combing operations after repeated sightings and mounting evidence linked tigress T-2 to the attacks. On Saturday evening, the tigress was finally darted with a tranquiliser shot during a carefully coordinated operation deep inside the forest.

However, the tense operation was initially clouded by uncertainty. Due to darkness and poor visibility inside the dense forest terrain, officials could not immediately confirm whether the tranquilised animal was indeed the suspected man-eater or another tiger roaming in the area.

Only after on-site verification and close examination did the forest team confirm that the captured animal was tigress T-2, the same tigress suspected in the deaths of four women.

The tigress was fully secured by around 8 pm.

Sources said no cubs were found accompanying the tigress during the operation. Forest authorities are now expected to conduct separate surveillance and monitoring regarding the whereabouts and condition of the cubs, if any.

The operation involved senior forest and wildlife officials, including Dr Kumarswami, J Arvind and Dr R S Khobragade.

Members of the Rapid Rescue Team of Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve, shooters, veterinary experts, tracking squads, forest guards and surveillance teams were also part of the large-scale operation.

Earlier, the department had deployed Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF) teams, camera traps and intensive tracking units across the forest zone in an attempt to locate the tigress before another attack occurred.

Though the capture has brought immediate relief, fear continues to grip Gunjewahi and nearby villages.

Residents who depend on forests for tendu leaf collection, cattle grazing and agricultural activities say the terror is far from over.

Many villagers have demanded permanent safety measures, compensation mechanisms, regular patrolling and stronger monitoring systems in vulnerable forest zones.

Locals allege that every year, poor villagers are forced to risk their lives entering forests for survival, while human-wildlife conflict continues to intensify with shrinking habitats and increasing movement of big cats near human settlements.

Forest officials said preliminary observations strongly suggest that the captured tigress was behind the attacks. However, final confirmation will depend on detailed medical examination, DNA analysis and camera trap verification.

The incident has once again reignited a larger debate over Chandrapur’s worsening human-wildlife conflict, where fear, poverty and survival often collide dangerously at the edge of the forest.