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Indian Express
2 days ago
- General
- Indian Express
Express View on dip in tiger numbers in Telangana, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Odisha: A new conservation challenge
Conservationists were jolted in 2006 when the country's tiger population plummeted to an all-time low of about 1,400. Course corrections in wildlife management have led to the majestic animal staging a remarkable recovery since that crisis. The country's protected areas have more than 3,600 tigers according to the latest enumeration of the animal in 2023. That Tiger Census also underlined areas of concern. The data revealed a dip in tiger numbers in Telangana, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Odisha. Now, another national assessment by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) and the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has flagged an emerging conservation challenge in the protected areas of these states. It has revealed that the prey that sustains these big cats — chital, sambal and the Indian bison — are declining. A sufficient prey base is not just elemental for the nutritional needs of the big cat, it's also necessary to obviate human-wildlife conflict. With enough herbivores within the protected areas, the tigers are less likely to stray out in search of alternative sources of food. A study published in the journal Science earlier this year also joined the dots between tiger population and the animal's declining prey base. The reserves where tiger populations have come down — Guru Ghasidas, Indravati, and Udanti-Sitanadi in Chhattisgarh, Simlipal and Satkosia in Odisha, and Palamau in Jharkhand — are situated in some of the poorest districts in the country. The study linked poverty with the poaching of ungulates. 'These reserves are known to have high incidences of bush meat consumption, often with the use of traps and snares that are usually indiscriminate in killing prey and predators,' the study found and made a strong case for linking 'biodiversity recovery' with socioeconomic improvements. It drew a contrast with tiger habitats in proximity to relatively prosperous areas, where people have received the benefits of conservation-related tourism. To revive the prey base, the WII and NTCA study recommends on-site breeding of ungulates in enclosures designed to keep predators away. This should, at best, be seen as a short-term measure. Herbivores raised in a protected environment are known to have a weak anti-predatory response. They cannot provide a sustainable prey base for the tiger in the long-run. More critical for the tiger's recovery is improving the quality of the animal's habitat. The good news is that some of the areas where the tiger and its prey are on the wane — in Chhattisgarh, for example — still have good-quality forests. Left-wing extremism is also on the decline in these areas. More needs to be done to make people partners in sustainable conservation.
The Hindu
30-05-2025
- General
- The Hindu
Tiger corridor of Kawal notified as Kumram Bheem Conservation Reserve
The Telangana State government on Friday issued orders declaring the tiger corridor area connecting the Kawal Tiger Reserve in the State with the Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve in Maharashtra as 'Kumram Bheem Conservation Reserve', as per the provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. Covering the total area of 1492.88 square kilometres or 149288.48 hectares of area, the proposed conservation reserve spans across Asifabad and Kagaznagar divisions, encompassing parts of Kerameri, Wankidi, Asifabad, Sirpur, Koutala, Bejjur, Kagaznagar, Rebbana, Dahegaon and Tiryani mandals of the Kumram Bheem Asifabad district, and 78 reserve forest blocks, including Garlapet, Ada, Manikgarh East, Manikgarh West, Danora, Gudem, Bejjur, Kadamba and Girali. The area is a critical part of the wildlife corridor connecting Kawal with not only Tadoba, but Kanhargaon, Tipeshwar, and Chaprala wildlife sanctuaries in Maharashtra and Indravati Tiger Reserve in Chhattisgarh. The presence of resident, breeding tigers in the area and several inter-State tiger dispersal events over the past decade indicate that it is a crucial link for maintaining tiger connectivity in this part of the central India landscape, said the notification. Apart from tigers, the proposed area is home to a variety of other carnivores such as leopard, wild dog, sloth bear, wolf, hyena, honey badger and jungle cat, and supports diverse prey such as gaur, sambar, nilgai, chital, four-horned antelope, muntjac, and Indian gazelle, the introductory note said, also adding the elephants which had made an appearance here some time back. More than 240 bird species have made it home - including the Malabar Pied Hornbills, and Long Billed Vulture - for which it is the only nesting site. While the Tiger Census, 2022 reported the presence of at least four adult tigers and three cubs, strategic camera trapping, year round monitoring, and other surveys by the Forest department revealed the use of the area by more than 45 unique tigers over the last decade, most of which are transient. Since 2015, there have been five instances where three tigers have collectively given birth to a total 17 cubs. About eight leopards too were recorded in the proposed area during the All India Leopard Estimation, 2022. A conservation reserve management committee has been constituted with the Kumram Bheem Asifabad District Forest Officer as the convenor, sarpanches of Karji, Motlaguda, Murliguda, and Kammergaon panchayats, representatives from the NGOs Hyderabad Tiger Conservation Society, WWF-India State Director, and Wildlife Conservation Trust, District Veterinary and Animal Husbandry Officer, District Agricultural Officer, and Forest Divisional Officers of Asifabad and Kagaznagar as members.
