The caged tiger, on the way to Calcutta. Picture by Sanjoy Chattopadhyaya

Jharkhali (Sunderbans), Feb. 22: Around six this morning, Tridibnagar woke up to the frantic bleating of a goat.

The tiger whose pug marks they spotted yesterday couldn’t after all resist the lure of meat and walked into a trap.

Principal chief conservator of forests Atanu Raha said it had injuries in the hind legs, which suggest the “possibility of poachers’ attack”.

A crocodile may have also attacked the tiger while it was crossing the river, said a forest official.

It was brought to the Ali-pore zoo for treatment late tonight.

Fishermen had spotted the pug marks on the bank of Herobhanga in Jharkhali, 150km from Calcutta, yesterday.

Four days ago a pregnant tigress was stoned, thrashed and caught by villagers in Deulbari, about 100km away.

The forest department set the trap. The villagers lit up torches and cordoned off the riverbank adjoining the village with fishing nets to prevent it from straying in.

“But around six, we heard the goat bleat and a tiger growl,” said Bichitra Biswas, 35, a member of the local forest protection force.

The villagers knew that a tiger was in their village for the goat but were not sure if it had been trapped.

“We heaved a sigh of relief when we saw it,” said Dibas Sardar, 40.

At Deulbari, five villagers were attacked while trying to catch the tigress.

Pradip Vyas, the joint director of the Sunderbans Biosphere and special chief conservator of forests, said it must have been looking for a safe place. “Tigers eat up cubs and so a tigress looks for safer places for giving birth.”