Amaravati, February 15, 2026: Wildlife teams released a healthy adult male tiger, nicknamed Explorer, into Papikonda National Park in Andhra Pradesh's Godavari landscape on Saturday morning.
The release at 9:30 a.m. marked the culmination of Operation Stripes, a first-of-its-kind effort in the state involving satellite collaring for real-time tracking.
The tiger, originally from the Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve, had wandered over 650 km through forest corridors across Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh.
It swam major rivers, including the Godavari, without harming humans during its 53-day transient phase. Tranquilised on February 6 near Kurmapuram village in East Godavari, it received veterinary care before rehabilitation approval from experts.
