MP: Hit by train 2 weeks ago, two tiger cubs die during treatment

Bhopal, Jul 31 (PTI) Rescued two weeks ago after being struck by a train in Madhya Pradesh’s Sehore district, two tiger cubs have died while undergoing treatment at the Van Vihar National Park in Bhopal, an official said on Wednesday.

One cub that had not been consuming food ever since the rescue died on Tuesday, while the other lost its life on Wednesday, the official from the park said.

The tiger cubs were rescued and transported from the Midghat section near Budhni in Sehore district to Bhopal on a special single-coach AC train run by the West Central Railway (WCR) on July 17.

In all, three cubs were found injured after they were struck by a train in the forest area, located 70 km from Bhopal, on the intervening night of July 14-15, an official said.

One of them died of injuries on the spot, while two injured cubs were brought to the rescue centre at Van Vihar National Park for treatment.

Detailed health check-ups and X-rays of two tiger cubs were carried out by the veterinary doctors and other medical team members on July 17, the official said.

The cubs were given treatment by the doctors of Van Vihar in consultation with other experts. The condition of both cubs was critical, the official said.

The rear part of the tiger cub’s body that died on Wednesday was not working and no desired improvement was seen in its condition, officials said earlier.

The post-mortem of the deceased tiger cubs was conducted by Dr Atul Gupta, the park's wildlife veterinarian, Dr Rajat Kulkarni of Wildlife SOS and Dr Prashant Deshmukh of Wildlife Conservation Trust.

After the post-mortem, the carcass of the cub that died on Wednesday was cremated as per the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) guidelines at the Van Vihar National Park. The other tiger cub's body was cremated on Tuesday after following the same set of protocols. PTI ADU NP NR