Lok Sabha Question No. 2844 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-08-03
Subject: Number of Tigers
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: PRASUN BANERJEE

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2844

## TO BE ANSWERED ON 03.08.2018

## Number of Tigers

## 2844.  SHRI PRASUN BANERJEE:

Will the Minister of ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE be pleased to state:

- (a) the total number of tigers as assessed during the last three census, State/UT-wise;
- (b) whether a large number of animals have been at risk or are becoming extinct due to various reasons during the last five years; and
- (c) if so, the details thereof and the corrective measures taken by the Government in this regard?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

(DR. MAHESH SHARMA)

- (a) The  details  of  tiger  estimation  pertaining  to  tiger  landscapes  in  the  country,  for  the years 2006, 2010 and 2014 are at Annexure-I .
- (b) & (c) Due  to  several  milestone  initiatives  taken  by  the  Government  of  India  through  the National Tiger Conservation Authority, the tiger is now on an assured path of recovery. Noteable amongst these are:-
- (i) Generic  guidelines  on  preparation  of  Security  Plan  which  forms  part  of  the overarching  Tiger  Conservation  Plan  (TCP),  mandated  under  the  Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 have been circulated.
- (ii) A protocol to conduct security audit of tiger reserves has been instituted.
- (iii) Advisory for Monsoon Patrolling has been issued to all tiger reserves.
- (iv) Advisory to deal with mortality due to electrocution has been circulated.
- (v) M-STrIPES (Monitoring system for Tigers' Intensive Protection and Ecological Status) patrol application (android based) has been provided to all tiger reserves to ensure effective area domination as well as accountability.
- (vi) Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) have been customized in a special project and  first  set  of  equipment  handed  over  to  the  Panna  Tiger  Reserve  after capacity building.
- (vii) Online  wildlife  crime  database  has  been  developed  with  the  Wildlife  Crime Control Bureau.
- (viii) Financial  assistance  under  ongoing  Centrally  Sponsored  Scheme  of  Project Tiger  is  provided  to  employ  anti-poaching  staff,  infrastructure  development besides  for  procuring  equipment  for  anti-poaching  and  assistance  for  legal support and intelligence gathering.
- (ix) Financial assistance to raise, arm and deploy the Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF).
- (x) Providing grant through NTCA for patrolling in tiger rich sensitive forest areas outside tiger reserves.
- (xi) Alerting the States as and when required and transmitting backward / forward linkages of information relating to poachers.
- (xii) Advising the States for combing forest floor to check snares / traps.
- (xiii) Performing  supervisory  field  visits  through  the  National  Tiger  Conservation Authority and its regional offices.
- (xiv) Launching tiger reserve level monitoring using camera trap to keep a photo ID database of individual tigers, in a national repository.
- (xv) Bilateral co-operation with neighbouring countries like Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan and sharing of information on seizure of body parts including skin of tigers to ascertain source area.

***

## ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) OF THE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2844 ON NUMBER OF TIGERS DUE FOR REPLY ON 03.08.2018

## Details of tiger estimation pertaining to tiger landscapes in the country, for the years 2006, 2010 and 2014

| State                                                                | Tiger Population   | Tiger Population   | Tiger Population   |
|----------------------------------------------------------------------|--------------------|--------------------|--------------------|
|                                                                      | 2006               | 2010               | 2014               |
| Shivalik-Gangetic Plain Landscape Complex                            |                    |                    |                    |
| Uttarakhand                                                          | 178                | 227                | 340                |
| Uttar Pradesh                                                        | 109                | 118                | 117                |
| Bihar                                                                | 10                 | 8                  | 28                 |
| Shivalik Gangetic                                                    | 297                | 353                | 485                |
| Central Indian Landscape Complex and Eastern Ghats Landscape Complex |                    |                    |                    |
| Andhra Pradesh (including Telangana)                                 | 95                 | 72                 | 68                 |
| Chhattisgarh                                                         | 26                 | 26                 | 46                 |
| Madhya Pradesh                                                       | 300                | 257                | 308                |
| Maharashtra                                                          | 103                | 169                | 190                |
| Odisha                                                               | 45                 | 32                 | 28                 |
| Rajasthan                                                            | 32                 | 36                 | 45                 |
| Jharkhand                                                            | -                  | 10                 | 3*                 |
| Central India                                                        | 601                | 601                | 688                |
| Western Ghats Landscape Complex                                      |                    |                    |                    |
| Karnataka                                                            | 290                | 300                | 406                |
| Kerala                                                               | 46                 | 71                 | 136                |
| Tamil Nadu                                                           | 76                 | 163                | 229                |
| Goa                                                                  | -                  | -                  | 5                  |
| Western Ghats                                                        | 412                | 534                | 776                |
| North Eastern Hills and Brahmaputra Flood Plains                     |                    |                    |                    |
| Assam                                                                | 70                 | 143                | 167                |
| Arunachal Pradesh                                                    | 14                 | -                  | 28 ♣               |
| Mizoram                                                              | 6                  | 5                  | 3*                 |
| North West Bengal                                                    | 10                 | -                  | 3                  |
| North East Hills, and Brahmaputra                                    | 100                | 148                | 201                |
| Sunderbans                                                           | -                  | 70                 | 76                 |
| TOTAL                                                                | 1411               | 1706               | 2226               |