13 Feb 2008
- The long-awaited India Tiger Estimation,
released yesterday by the government of
India, shows the country more at risk of
losing its national symbol to poaching and
habitat loss, WWF India said yesterday.
WWF commended the Indian
government for its scientific integrity,
and for sharing with the world the harsh
truth of the crisis facing the tiger.
The census, conducted
in 2006/ 2007 estimates an Indian tiger
population of between 1165 and 1657 tigers.
But drastically improved survey methods
including the introduction of camera traps
means the result cannot be directly compared
to the 2002 population estimate of 3642
tigers, viewed as inflated by WWF India
tiger experts.
Further counting, particularly
in the Sunderbans area adjoining Bangla
Desh, is expected to add around another
100 tigers to the total.
WWF complimented the
Indian government’s National Tiger Conservation
Authority for its decision to undertake
a scientific assessment of tiger population
through an independent research agency,
the Wildlife Institute of India which has
resulted in producing the most reliable
picture yet of the state of the Indian tiger.
This is the most complete census ever undertaken
of tigers in India, or indeed of wild tigers
anywhere.
“These estimates are
distressingly low, but at least we now have
better habitat and population data than
ever before and we can intervene more strategically
and more effectively to help ensure that
tiger populations recover, and that India
can maintain its national symbol.” said
Sujoy Banerjee, Director, Species Conservation,
WWF-India.
"It is also amply
clear that the tiger numbers are at the
threshold, and if the numbers go down any
further, then recovery may not be possible
at all. The time has come for the government
and all other institutions and agencies
to show serious commitment to tiger conservation
if at all we wish to see tiger in the wild
in India in the future" he added.
Tigers are threatened
by a combination of poaching, habitat loss
from development, the loss of corridors
between areas and retaliatory killing of
tigers for preying on cattle or attacking
humans. The existence of international markets
for illegal tiger parts in spite of the
fact that the countries where majority of
illegal trade in wildlife takes place are
signatories of the CITES (Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species
of Wild Fauna and Flora) is indeed a matter
of grave concern.
“However, we are satisfied
that many of the areas where WWF is deeply
involved in tiger conservation are among
the areas identified as having the best
prospects for tigers,” Banerjee said.
WWF is working at the
grassroots level in these landscapes by
supporting the forest department for better
protection of tigers, providing habitat
management initiatives for better management
of prey populations and reducing the human-animal
conflict to nullify chances of retaliatory
killings of tiger or its prey.
It is also working to
curb poaching by developing an informer
network and better equipping and training
staff engaged in anti-poaching activities.
Above all, it is working very closely with
local communities to reduce their pressures
on the forest resources on one hand, while
providing them with better livelihood opportunities
to help them become “partners in conservation”
.
“It is of great concern
that some reserves appear to have lost their
tigers, pointing to a clear need to upgrade
and maintain the general level of protection
offered in reserves,” Banerjee said.
“The matter of most
concern is the tigers outside the Tiger
Reserves, National Parks and Sanctuaries,”
Banerjee said. “If attention is not paid
to their conservation we will lose them
altogether. The continued threat from poaching
and illegal trade in tiger parts must be
met with enhanced enforcement efforts.”
WWF-India welcomed the
government initiatives, announced on the
survey’s release, to increase financial
assistance for tiger conservation, both
within and outside protected areas. It also
applauded this month’s establishment of
the eight nation South Asia Wildlife Trade
Initiative (SAWTI) as the beginning of an
effective co-operation on organized criminal
networks engaged in wildlife trafficking.
WWF hopes that the newly
formed Wildlife Crime Control Bureau will
also start showing results which will be
of immense value for tiger conservation
in India.
