Despite protests like that from the government of Orissa there are reasons to believe that the latest figures about the tiger population in the country, released by the National Tiger Conservation Authority, closely resemble the actual numbers of the wild cats in India-1411-than the previous figure of over 3000 being touted since 2002. The latest tiger census is a result of a two-year survey. It was more scientific too unlike in the past when pugmarks were the sole guide.
After it became known that the tiger has disappeared from the Sariska reserve in Rajasthan's Alwar district a drastic downward revision of the country's tiger population was to be expected. Rampant poaching, fragmentation of tiger habitat, frantic 'development' activities, ill-equipped staff that often lack motivation are only some of the factors that were ruining the efforts, even if not sufficient, made by the government to preserve the country's tiger population.
Some would say that the biggest factor responsible for the rapid decline in tigers has been the failure to enthuse the local people and associate them actively in conservation programmes. Many among the so-called educated and well-heeled, who could be presumed to be concerned about issues like saving the tiger, the national animal, show scant respect for preserving the fauna and flora of the country. What is more famous public figures from celluloid and cricket world are 'caught' hunting animals that are supposed to be protected by law.
Shooting tigers and lions may no longer be a patrician pastime. But the tiger and other wildlife as also the forests where they live face a greater threat from poachers and timber mafia than ever before. A century ago the tiger population in the world was about 100,000; today it is 6000 or so. Three of the eight species of the tiger in the world have become extinct. Our very own Bengal Tiger may well be heading that way.
Great hopes were raised in 1973 after the launch of Project Tiger in India. The number of tiger habitats covered under this scheme soon went up from the initial 9 to 28, incorporating an area of 37761 sq km. When it was found not have kept pace with pressures from increasing human activities that were bringing fast changes in the tiger landscape across the country Project Tiger yielded (in 2006) to National Tiger Conservation Authority. By then Project Tiger had cost the nation a staggering Rs 2607 crore.
The alarming decline of the tiger saw the government announce last year that armed personnel would be recruited to form a Tiger Protection Force, which will guard the sanctuaries and national parks. In January, the prime minister had set up a National Wildlife Crime Prevention Bureau. But the results of these measures would be known only later.
The tiger is found in at least 18 states with 10 of them boasting a population of over 100. But what has been suspected for sometime and confirmed by the latest figures is that not all states or reserves are friendly for the conservation of the tiger. In fact, only a handful of tiger sanctuaries-the Corbett park in Uttarakhand being one of them-has done well to preserve the tiger. A better care for the forest guards, changing the pattern of their patrolling and, above all, seeking the help of the locals to look for poachers were some of the methods employed at Corbett.
The illegal trade in tiger skin and other body parts, which is a direct offshoot of poaching, has been increasing, apparently without much obstacle. The unlawful trade in tiger perhaps thrives more in China than India but it has existed in India for long. In the last few years the authorities have claimed to nab the 'biggest' trader or 'ring leaders' in tiger parts on a number of occasions, arresting men like Sansar Chand and Shaheen Hassan Qureshi.
Yet, it is doubtful if the racketeering in tiger parts is going to stop in the near future. The annual global (illegal) trade in tiger parts, used largely in the manufacture of indigenous medicines, is believed to be worth $40 billion. India is among the 167 countries that have signed a convention that declares trading in tiger body parts as illegal.
The demand from China and some other Southeast Asian countries, besides India, keeps this business going. The tiger is hunted for pelts, claws and bones. There are doubts about the Chinese willingness to adopt more strict methods to preserve the tiger or curb the demand for its parts.
True, the Indian authorities cannot pass the blame on to a foreign government for their failures in arresting poaching and the poor tiger conservation programmes. Project Tiger itself would have perhaps delivered better results had the conservation efforts been better designed and implemented. Only the reserves where there has been a greater involvement of people have shown good results in the conservation of both forest and tiger. The tiger population declined in 11 states where the forest cover had also gone down.
Nomenclature of the authority designated to save the tiger will hardly matter if, for instance, the forest staff continue to be inadequately equipped and well trained and motivated staff are not recruited. The number of sanctioned posts of forest guards has seen no increase in the past six-decades. Many field posts remain vacant for years.
The organised crime syndicates that poach in the jungles are well-armed with sophisticated guns and many of them are quite powerful in their own way. Their nefarious activities will not stop without a strong political will. Creating a single specialised agency might be a better way to check crimes in the forests that are habitats of the tiger.
Chandramohan, Syndicate Features
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