Reshma Ravishanker & Arshiya Uzma
An otherwise casual workation to Rajasthan’s Ranthambore turned horrifying for the principal of an International School in Mumbai after she had a face-to-face encounter with a tiger on Wednesday.
Mahera Goel, Head of School – Early and Elementary School, Fazlani L’Academie School and her family were among the tens of tourists who encountered the tiger while descending the Ranthambore Fort’s Trinetra Ganesha Temple on November 6 evening. As luck would have it, Goel and her family escaped from the big cat with some scratches and a horrifying tale to tell.
“We had a great start to the day. We went on a morning safari that day and sighted tigers are bears. We proceeded to visit other places as we had a successful sighting. We left for the Trinetra Ganesha Temple in the afternoon. My family member Rajiv also came along,” recalls Goel.
The Ganesha temple is atop Ranthambore Fort and is a 200 steps ascent uphill that takes tourists around a half an hour climb. The route to the temple passes through dense bushes of the Ranthambore Fort that lies within the Ranthambore National Park’s range at Sawai Madhopur.
“We were on our way down at around 4pm and merely 30 meters to the exit. That stretch is lined with hand railings on either side. Right out of the bushes, a tiger came at us from the left. Tourists panicked and some started shouting. Two women tourists who were with us were shocked too. One of them fled the scene while the other fell and was unable to run. The tiger walked past her at an arm’s distance and caused no harm.
“As the tiger continued walking along the path, we were right in the eye of the tiger. We froze. Instinctively, we hid in the bushes nearby. We did not know what happened for a few seconds that followed. The tiger still proceeded towards us and we were now looking it in the eye. I chanted every prayer my naani taught me. We were terror-stricken. We don’t know whether a tourist flung a stone or it fell off the trail, it caused a distraction for the tiger. The tiger started walking away. We immediately got up and headed towards the railing. Before we knew it, a tiger clawed Rajiv from behind. It scratched him, leaving claw marks on the back. He tried to shoo the tiger away with a cap he wore and we escaped. I don’t know what goodness saved us” she adds.
Goel believes that there were two tigers at the spot as the first one they noticed had walked past much ahead and the second one could have attacked.
Meanwhile, another tourist shared a similar experience on social media earlier this week
No precaution or help
Goel said that tour guides who continued to take tourists to the temple minutes later claimed to be aware of the presence of tigress Arrowhead and her cubs along the path and did not stop tourists from going there.
“Guides and locals told us that the tiger and her cubs were spotted along the same path for atleast three days now. It is appalling that despite the alert, there were no forest officers, no warning sign or security for tourists. We don’t blame the tiger. We were in its territory afterall,” Goel added.
EducationWorld tried seeking a response from the tourism and forest department of Rajasthan but in vain.
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