Baripada/Angul: A tiger census begun across the state on Friday with focus on Similipal and Satkosia tiger reserves. The national tiger estimation is being carried out after four years.

In Similipal tiger reserve, 250 forest employees are on the job for nine days using direct sighting, camera trap method and other techniques for the census.

For the first time, the enumerators used M-stripe App to record evidences instead of the usual pen and paper.

Similipal tiger reserve's deputy director Yaganadutt Pati said the census was carried out for six days at other wildlife sanctuaries, but at Simlipal and Satkosia it was a nine-day exercise.

"The last census had pegged the count of tigers at 20. We expect the population to have increased in these four years," he said.

The census will also enumerate the count of leopards and other co-predators and herbivores in the two forests. The team has installed 380 trap cameras in the core and buffer regions of Similipal tiger reserve for the census.

The process of collection of evidence for tiger census has started in all the nine ranges under Satkosia tiger reserve from Friday. This is also called carnivore sign survey.

Regional chief conservator of forest S, Panda said 800 people were on the job.

"The survey will be recorded and will be photographed. Videograph, still photographs and records will be sent to the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun," he said.

Biker killed

A motorcyclist died at Balia village on the Cuttack-Chandballi state highway under Kendrapara Sadar police limits in Kendrapara district after a vehicle knocked down his motorbike. The deceased, identified as Mukhtar Khan, 28, native of Patkura, died on the spot on Thursday night