Tigress T138 released in Bengal’s Buxa Tiger Reserve to begin tiger reintroduction
Key facts
- On 2 October 2026, three-year-old tigress T138 was released into Buxa Tiger Reserve, West Bengal.
- She was brought from Bihar's Valmiki Tiger Reserve, chosen for its similar terrain.
- Two to three more tigers are likely to be added to the reserve.
- Buxa was declared a tiger reserve in 1983 but lost its stable resident tiger population.
Why it matters
[Policy] This starts a phased plan to build a breeding, self-sustaining tiger population in Buxa. Reintroduction means bringing tigers back where they went locally extinct. India began this at Sariska and Panna in 2008. The NTCA has since run it across 12 tiger reserves. Buxa connects to forests in Bhutan and to Manas Tiger Reserve.
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