Shocking News! Only 1000 Tigers left in the Wild

Hindustan Times
New Delhi
17 Feb 2010


Chetan Chauhan,
India’s wild tiger population is less than the often claimed figure of 1,411 tigers.

“It (the figure) is an exaggeration,” Environment and Forest Minister Jairam Ramesh said, while launching a handbook on wildlife law enforcement in India. “I don’t know from where the figure came. Probably, the number of tigers in the wild are much lower and are diminishing day by day”.

Hindustan Times was the first to report in January that India’s wild tiger population may not be more than 1,000. Many experts have doubts over the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NCTA) figure of 1,411.

“To me, there are not more than 1,000 to 1,100 tigers in the wild,” said P.K. Sen, former director of Project Tiger.

The Tiger Census report had estimated maximum of 1,650 and minimum of 1,150 tigers in 2007. It meant an average of 1,411 tigers. Since then, over 100 deaths have been reported.

The new tiger census that uses better methodology will be completed by October and by December 2010, the number of big cat would be out.

Belinda Wright, executive director of Wildlife Protection Society of India, said: “The tiger estimate in new census would be less” than in 2008.

However, Sen said that “Except Corbett Tiger Reserve, the tiger population in most other reserves has diminished.”

But four tigers died in Corbett last month, which Anil Baluni, deputy chairman of state environment and forest advisory committee, said were because of natural reasons. “There wasn’t even a single case of poaching as all body parts were intact,” he said.