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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

Maharashtra-Andhra play ‘cupid’ to lone tiger

Mumbai: In a warm gesture, the Maharashtra government has ‘in principle’ agreed to translocate two tigresses to the Papikonda National Park (PNP) in Andhra Pradesh, subject to clearance from the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), official sources said. The PNP is located in the Papi Hills of Eluru and Polavaram districts, and Maharashtra has responded positively to a request from the AP Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan. On Feb. 19, Kalyan, who holds the Environment & Forests...

Maharashtra-Andhra play ‘cupid’ to lone tiger

Mumbai: In a warm gesture, the Maharashtra government has ‘in principle’ agreed to translocate two tigresses to the Papikonda National Park (PNP) in Andhra Pradesh, subject to clearance from the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), official sources said. The PNP is located in the Papi Hills of Eluru and Polavaram districts, and Maharashtra has responded positively to a request from the AP Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan. On Feb. 19, Kalyan, who holds the Environment & Forests departments, had made a formal written request to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, seeking two tigresses from the Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) of Chandrapur district. Citing the backgrounder, Kalyan said that on Jan. 20, a dispersing tiger from central India had entered AP state through the eco-sensitive zone of PNP tiger reserve, after traversing through Telangana. ‘Dispersing’ is the natural behaviour of young and independent tigers to leave their birthplace to carve their own territories, find mates and establish a new home. This prevents inbreeding, reduces competition on resources with their parents and enables genetic health of the larger tiger population in the wilds. The migrant tiger traversed over 650-kms through Eluru, East Godavari and Konaseema districts for nearly three weeks mostly through human dominated landscapes, when it was hunting for food also. “Though there were 20-22 instances of livestock depredation, no human injury was reported,” informed Kalyan, adding that the tiger passed through three States. Explaining the purpose for seeking two tigresses, Kalyan contended that it would boost inter-state wildlife conservation and sustainable tiger conservation in the Eastern Ghats landscape. Considering public safety and the NTCA’s Standard Operating Procedures the migrant tiger was tranquilized and safely captured on Feb. 6, 2026 through coordinated efforts of AP Forest Department, veterinarians and wildlife experts, he said. To keep track of his further movements, the tiger was fitted with a Satellite Radio Collar (SRC) and released in the PNP. Thereafter, the AP’s Expert Committee suggested release of two female tigers to facilitate breeding and territorial stability. After examining the issue in detail, Maharashtra’s Chief Wildlife Warden & Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) Marthala Shrinivasa Reddy informed Additional Chief Secretary (Forest), that the proposal may be considered ‘in principle’, subject to formal proposal by AP government to NTCA and approvals from the latter and preparations of a mutually agreed translocation and post-release monitoring. “The translocation of tigers from Maharashtra to another state involves inter-State transfer of Schedule-I wildlife and requires prior approval of NTCA and other competent authorities as prescribed under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 and relevant guidelines,” Reddy informed. Reddy said that while the male-female ratio in TATR is comparatively low, but the adjoining Chandrapur Forest circle possesses an adequate female tiger population, from where two suitable females could be considered for translocation after all statutory approvals and procedures are completed. After Reddy’s green signal, the state Deputy Secretary (Forests) Niketa Pande wrote to the AP’s Principal Secretary (Environment and Forest) about Maharashtra’s ‘in-principle’ approval, and requested to complete all other formalities at the earliest to provide mates for the solo tiger in PNP.

A New Shooting Prodigy

Esha Singh’s dominance in Munich announces the arrival of a new kind of Indian shooting champion.

Perhaps because of the nature of her sport, shooter Esha Singh announced her brilliance quietly, almost stealthily. Earlier this week, the 21-year-old Indian shooter stood amid one of the strongest pistol fields in Munich, Germany to snare a gold in the women’s 25-metre pistol event at the ISSF World Cup with a world-record score of 43.


Munich is regarded as one of the toughest arenas in international shooting where the margins are microscopic and the pressure is relentless. Yet Esha shot as though she was insulated from both.


She opened the final with three flawless series, hitting 15 targets out of 15 and immediately forcing the rest of the field into pursuit mode. By the time the competition reached its closing stages, the contest was about how far ahead the Indian prodigy would finish.


Such was Esha’s dominance that Olympic champion Yang Ji-in of South Korea faded to fifth while Germany’s Doreen Vennekamp, shooting before a home crowd and carrying the pedigree of a former world champion, finished five hits behind. The previous world record, held by Kim Ye-ji was left in the shade by Esha’s new record.


But records do not fully explain what made her performance remarkable. From the opening series, Esha shot with an almost eerie composure.


Even her rare mistakes felt temporary. When she missed her first shot in the fourth series, there was no visible panic or collapse in rhythm. She responded with the kind of emotional neutrality that elite athletes spend entire careers trying to cultivate. Under elimination pressure in the sixth and eighth rounds, she fired perfect scores again.


There was something revealing in what Esha said afterward. She admitted that she had not even realized she had broken the world record until after the event ended.


That focused attitude has defined much of her rise. Born in Hyderabad in 2005, Esha did not initially seem destined for shooting. As a child, she moved through sports casually after trying her had at badminton and tennis before a visit to the shooting range at Gachibowli Stadium altered the trajectory of her life. Her father, a former rally driver, recognized both her fascination and discipline quickly enough to build a paper shooting range at home so she could train obsessively.


India’s shooting ecosystem had seen prodigies before, but Esha’s emergence was startling even by those standards. At 13, she defeated established names such as Manu Bhaker and Heena Sidhu to become the youngest national champion in the 10 m air pistol event. The victory announced her talent, but perhaps more importantly, it hinted at something psychological. While young athletes are often intimidated by reputations long before they are defeated by skill, Esha appeared immune to this phenomenon.


At the 2022 Asian Games, she collected four medals, confirming her place within India’s increasingly formidable shooting pipeline. Later came a junior world title in the 25-metre pistol event and qualification for the Paris Olympics.


Yet it would be simplistic to view Esha merely as the latest product of India’s shooting revolution. India has already produced icons in the discipline in form of Manu Bhaker’s fearless confidence, Heena Sidhu’s precision, Rahi Sarnobat’s resilience transformed the country into a serious shooting nation. But Esha represents a slightly different evolution of the Indian shooter, one who is technically polished, emotionally self-contained and unusually indifferent to external noise.


That emotional self-containment was visible even in the way she described pressure after the Munich final.


Esha’s victory carried an additional layer of redemption. During the previous Munich World Cup cycle, she had failed to qualify for the finals despite posting a respectable score. This year, she arrived determined not merely to compete but to conquer a venue that had once rejected her.


The setting made the achievement larger. Munich occupies a special place in world shooting because of the density of elite competition it attracts. “Even getting into the top eight is very tight,” Esha observed. For many shooters, surviving qualification there already feels like an accomplishment.


But Esha triumphed effortlessly, and with a kind of understated Indianness.


Her gold medal in Munich has secured India’s first individual shooting medal of the ISSF World Cup season and earned her qualification for the season-ending World Cup Finals in Rome later this year. The ISSF already regards her as one of the world’s brightest young talents.


Esha speaks softly and carries little visible theatricality. But behind that calm exterior exists an athlete capable of dismantling Olympic champions under suffocating pressure.

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