Maintaining viable tiger population, balancing development India's goal for next 50 years: Project Tiger head

India aims to sustain a viable tiger population based on a scientifically calculated carrying capacity of habitats while maintaining a balance between development and wildlife conservation the head of Project Tiger which completed 50 years on April 1 said on WednesdayAdditional Director General of Forests S P Yadav also said that though tiger poaching has substantially reduced due to better technology and protection mechanisms it is still the biggest threat to the big cats besides habitat fragmentation and degradationIndia launched Project Tiger on April 1 1973 to promote tiger conservation Initially it covered nine tiger reserves spread over 18278 sq km At present there are 53 tiger reserves spanning more than 75000 sq km approximately 24 per cent of the countrys geographical areaIndia has around 3000 tigers more than 70 per cent of the global wild tiger population and the number is increasing at a rate of 6 per cent per yearPrime Minister Narendra Modi will release the latest tiger census data at a mega event to mark the completion of 50 years of Project Tiger in Karnatakas Mysuru on April 9Also Read Mumbai Third SGNP cub dies fourth in critical stateHe will also release the governments vision for tiger conservation during Amrit KaalThere has been very significant progress There is hardly any parallel in the world of a scheme of this scale and magnitude that has been so successful Yadav said in an interview with PTIThe goal would be to have a viable and sustainable tiger population in tiger habitats based on a scientifically calculated carrying capacity Im not putting a number to it as we cannot increase the tiger population of the country at the same pace because that will result in an increase in conflict with human beings he said when asked about Project Tigers objective for the next 50 yearsYadav said the government is focusing on bringing potential tiger habitats under the conservation programme and actively managing tiger reserves based on their carrying capacityTiger numbers of many reserves are very low These include Buxa Tiger Reserve in West Bengal Satkosia and Similipal in Odisha and Satpura in Madhya Pradesh We need active management where tiger numbers are below or above the carrying capacityWe need to translocate these tigers to areas that have a good prey base and better chances of survival So that will be the future strategy for tiger conservation in our country he saidYadav who is also the member secretary of the National Tiger Conservation Authority NTCA a statutory body tasked with managing tiger habitats in India stressed the need to strike a balance between development and conservation activitiesWe are a developing country we cannot rule out development we need employment At the same time we also need to conserve our tigers and other wildlife This is where we have to strike a balanceThe government with the help of the Wildlife Institute of India has come up with guidelines for linear infrastructure and mitigation measures So all proposals of projects in tiger corridors or tiger habitats or buffer areas are put up before the standing committee of the NBWL National Board for Wildlife and implemented only after the recommendation of the panel which looks into all factors including appropriate mitigation measures he saidNTCA data shows that India lost 857 tigers between 2012 and 2020 while 193 of them died due to poaching Such incidents came down substantially from 34 in 2018 to just seven in 2020Yadav said poaching is still the number one threat to tigers besides habitat fragmentation and degradationPoaching takes place in India not because there is a demand in our country it is driven by the demand in consumer countries Thanks to technology better surveillance patrolling and protection mechanisms poaching has substantially reduced in India But it still is the number one threatWe can always try aim for a zeropoaching situation but its very difficult We are the largest tiger range country in the world We have more than 70 per cent of the global tiger population With so many tigers its difficult to say that all our areas are 100 per cent protected So it cannot be ruled out he saidAsked if Indias wildlife conservation efforts have done justice to people dependent on forests the Project Tiger chief said the successful conservation of tigers Asiatic elephants singlehorned rhinos and Asiatic lions became possible because of the cooperation and tolerance of the peopleNow the time has come that we have an aggressive peoples agenda which means the direct and substantial benefit of conservation should go to the people he saidThe senior forest official added that Project Tiger generates more than 45 lakh mandays of employment for local people annually Besides the government is supporting ecodevelopment committees and selfhelp groupsHe emphasised that better monitoring and early warning systems for dispersing tigers are required to minimise tigerhuman conflictTigers are required to establish their own territory once they assume maturity In search of territory they fight with the existing tigers They move out if they lose It is called dispersalAnd while dispersing they pass through tiger corridors If there is some disturbance or there is some diversion due to roads or canals or any linear infrastructure they move into the human habitat but its not their nature Tigers do not identify human beings as their preyThe NTCA has issued a standard operating procedure on what could be done in such a situation but we need better monitoring and a better early warning system especially on the dispersing tigers to make people aware of the tiger movement in the region to prevent any loss Yadav saidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the 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