Tiger numbers can never tell the whole story

Source– The post is based on the article “Tiger numbers can never tell the whole story” published in live mint on 15th April 2023.

Syllabus: GS3- Environment – Biodiversity Conservation

Relevance: Wildlife Conservation

News – On 9 April, Prime Minister Narendra Modi released the latest tiger numbers. We have about 3,167 tigers in India. The last estimation in 2018 counted 2,967 tigers.

What are the genetic variations in Tigers?

Except for the Western Ghats, these populations are quite small, and this is a matter of concern.

The tigers in Satkosia have gone extinct.

According to the 2018 census, Valmiki has about 30 tigers.

The Simlipal tigers are famed for their broad black stripes, rather than the traditional orange-yellow and black.

The 2022 report also points out that the North-East hill tiger population could be the result of gene flow from the South-East Asian tigers of Myanmar.

What are the two main management challenges?

One is the question of repopulating reserves that don’t have tigers. In areas like Satkosia, tigers can be brought in, but they have to be from a related genetic cluster.

The second is the issue of connecting tiger habitats so tigers can disperse naturally and create viable populations.

What are the recent amendments to the 1980 Forest (Conservation) Act in this regard?

The proposed clause suggests that forests around highways, public roads, railways, or public amenities of a certain size should not be considered forests. It opens forest areas to non-forest users.

It proposes that the construction of linear projects within 100 km of the international border and concerning “strategic” or “national importance”, should be exempt from the Act.

What is the way forward?

There is a need to make tigers a cross-cutting concern with all departments and to bypass forests that have tigers.

The less effective option is to make roads underground or overhead, a form of “green infrastructure”.

Tiger numbers can only go up if the animal is allowed to walk and then secure its own land. Further, tigers have genetic clusters within India and there is a need to bolster numbers within these distinct populations.