The department has gone to the extent of halting round-the-clock road laying work on NH-28 in the area.

“We interacted with the authorities on Friday and asked for help in the matter. They have agreed to discontinue the work during the night time which will reduce the disturbance. The glaring lights used during the night time for the construction work will also be switched off. These lights brighten up till nearly 500 metres further dissuading the tiger to move to the jungle,” said J K Singh, Divisional Forest Officer, Basti.

Pug marks of the tiger leading up to the NH-28 construction site and then turning back have been reported. The tiger had crossed over to Faizabad district on February 27. Its presence was once again confirmed in Sitaram Manjha area in Basti district.

According to the forest department officials, the Tikri forest area will be an appropriate natural habitat for the big cat. But due to the continuous construction activity, it is unable to cross the NH-28 which is six kilometers away from Tikri forest.