Lok Sabha Question No. 3058 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-08-06
Subject: Decline in Population of Tigers
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: Arvind Ganpat Sawant, Bhartruhari Mahtab, Sanjay Jaiswal

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3058

TO BE ANSWERED ON: 06.08.2021

## Decline in Population of Tigers

## 3058.  SHRI ARVIND GANPAT SAWANT: SHRI BHARTRUHARI MAHTAB: DR. SANJAY JAISWAL:

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

- (a) whether the Government has taken note of declining tiger population in the country including Satkosia Tiger Reserve (STR) in Odisha;
- (b) if so, the details and the reasons thereof along with the number of tigers in the country at present State/UT-wise including Chhattisgarh;
- (c) the  steps  taken  and  schemes  being  implemented  by  the  Government  for  tiger conservation and to check poaching in the country along with the funds provided to various States for the purpose, State/UT-wise including Odisha; and
- (d) the steps being taken to increase funds for tiger conservation scheme in accordance with the requirements of the States for the said purpose?

## ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE (SHRI ASHWINI KUMAR CHOUBEY)

- (a) & (b) The tiger population in India has shown an increase since the first cycle of the All India Tiger Estimation using the refined methodology in 2006, which was subsequently  carried  out  quadrennially  in  2010,  2014  and  2018,  details  of which are at Annexure-I .    The Satkosia is a low density Tiger Reserve with potential to sustain more tigers.
- (c) The milestone initiatives taken by the Government of India for conservation and  protection  of  tigers  are  at Annexure-II. The  funding  assistance  is provided under the ongoing Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Project Tiger to States for conservation and protection of tiger.  The details are at AnnexureIII.
- (d) The budget allocation is prioritized in order to maximize protection, monitoring  and  eco-development  activities  while  dovetailing  with  resources available with other schemes and State Governments.

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## ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) & (b) OF THE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3058 ON DECLINE IN POPULATION OF TIGERS DUE FOR REPLY ON 06/08/2021

## Details of tiger estimation pertaining to tiger landscapes in the country, for the years 2006, 2010, 2014 and 2018

| State                                                                | Tiger Population                                                     | Tiger Population                                                     | Tiger Population                                                     | Tiger Population                                                     |
|----------------------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------|
|                                                                      | 2006                                                                 | 2010                                                                 | 2014                                                                 | 2018                                                                 |
| Shivalik-Gangetic Plain Landscape Complex                            | Shivalik-Gangetic Plain Landscape Complex                            | Shivalik-Gangetic Plain Landscape Complex                            | Shivalik-Gangetic Plain Landscape Complex                            | Shivalik-Gangetic Plain Landscape Complex                            |
| Uttarakhand                                                          | 178                                                                  | 227                                                                  | 340                                                                  | 442                                                                  |
| Uttar Pradesh                                                        | 109                                                                  | 118                                                                  | 117                                                                  | 173                                                                  |
| Bihar                                                                | 10                                                                   | 8                                                                    | 28                                                                   | 31                                                                   |
| Shivalik Gangetic                                                    | 297                                                                  | 353                                                                  | 485                                                                  | 646                                                                  |
| Central Indian Landscape Complex and Eastern Ghats Landscape Complex | Central Indian Landscape Complex and Eastern Ghats Landscape Complex | Central Indian Landscape Complex and Eastern Ghats Landscape Complex | Central Indian Landscape Complex and Eastern Ghats Landscape Complex | Central Indian Landscape Complex and Eastern Ghats Landscape Complex |
| Andhra Pradesh                                                       | 95                                                                   | 72                                                                   | 68                                                                   | 48                                                                   |
| Telangana                                                            | -                                                                    | -                                                                    | -                                                                    | 26                                                                   |
| Chhattisgarh                                                         | 26                                                                   | 26                                                                   | 46                                                                   | 19                                                                   |
| Madhya Pradesh                                                       | 300                                                                  | 257                                                                  | 308                                                                  | 526                                                                  |
| Maharashtra                                                          | 103                                                                  | 169                                                                  | 190                                                                  | 312                                                                  |
| Odisha                                                               | 45                                                                   | 32                                                                   | 28                                                                   | 28                                                                   |
| Rajasthan                                                            | 32                                                                   | 36                                                                   | 45                                                                   | 69                                                                   |
| Jharkhand                                                            | -                                                                    | 10                                                                   | 3*                                                                   | 5                                                                    |
| Central India                                                        | 601                                                                  | 601                                                                  | 688                                                                  | 1033                                                                 |
| Western Ghats Landscape Complex                                      | Western Ghats Landscape Complex                                      | Western Ghats Landscape Complex                                      | Western Ghats Landscape Complex                                      | Western Ghats Landscape Complex                                      |
| Karnataka                                                            | 290                                                                  | 300                                                                  | 406                                                                  | 524                                                                  |
| Kerala                                                               | 46                                                                   | 71                                                                   | 136                                                                  | 190                                                                  |
| Tamil Nadu                                                           | 76                                                                   | 163                                                                  | 229                                                                  | 264                                                                  |
| Goa                                                                  | -                                                                    | -                                                                    | 5                                                                    | 3                                                                    |
| Western Ghats                                                        | 412                                                                  | 534                                                                  | 776                                                                  | 981                                                                  |
| North Eastern Hills and Brahmaputra Flood Plains                     | North Eastern Hills and Brahmaputra Flood Plains                     | North Eastern Hills and Brahmaputra Flood Plains                     | North Eastern Hills and Brahmaputra Flood Plains                     | North Eastern Hills and Brahmaputra Flood Plains                     |
| Assam                                                                | 70                                                                   | 143                                                                  | 167                                                                  | 190                                                                  |
| Arunachal Pradesh                                                    | 14                                                                   | -                                                                    | 28 **                                                                | 29                                                                   |
| Mizoram                                                              | 6                                                                    | 5                                                                    | 3*                                                                   | 0                                                                    |
| Nagaland                                                             | -                                                                    | -                                                                    | -                                                                    | 0                                                                    |
| Northern West Bengal                                                 | 10                                                                   | -                                                                    | 3*                                                                   | 0                                                                    |
| North East Hills, and Brahmaputra                                    | 100                                                                  | 148                                                                  | 201                                                                  | 219                                                                  |
| Sunderbans                                                           | -                                                                    | 70                                                                   | 76                                                                   | 88                                                                   |
| TOTAL                                                                | 1411                                                                 | 1706                                                                 | 2226                                                                 | 2967                                                                 |

## ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (c) OF THE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3058 ON DECLINE IN POPULATION OF TIGERS DUE FOR REPLY ON 06/08/2021

## Milestone initiatives taken by the Government of India for conservation and protection of tigers

1. Amendment  of  the  Wild  Life  (Protection)  Act,  1972  in  2006  to  provide  enabling provisions for constituting the National Tiger Conservation Authority under section 38 IV B and the Tiger and Other Endangered Species Crime Control Bureau under section 38 IV C.
2. Enhancement of punishment for offence in relation to the core area of a tiger reserve or where  the  offence  relates  to  hunting  in  the  tiger  reserves  or  altering  the  boundaries  of  tiger reserves, etc.
3. Comprehensive guidelines under section 38O 1 (c) of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 issued for Project Tiger and Tourism in Tiger Reserves on 15 th October, 2012.
4. Strengthening of antipoaching activities, including special strategy for monsoon patrolling,  by  providing  funding  support  to  tiger  reserve  States,  as  proposed  by  them,  for deployment  of  antipoaching  squads  involving  ex-army  personnel  or  home  guards,  apart  from workforce  comprising  of  local  people,  in  addition  to  strengthening  of  communication  and wireless facilities.
5. Srivilliputhur  Megamalai  Tiger  Reserve  (Tamil  Nadu)  has  been  notified  as  51 st Tiger Reserve in the country on 08.02.2021.
6. A scientific methodology for estimating tiger (including co-predators, prey animals and assessment  of  habitat  status)  has  been  evolved  and  mainstreamed.    The  findings  of  this estimation and assessment are bench marks for future tiger conservation strategy.
7. The 18 tiger States have notified the core/critical tiger habitat (40787.16 sq. km.), and the buffer/peripheral area (32978.43 sq.km.) of all the 51 tiger reserves in the country, under section 38V of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, as amended in 2006.
8. Financial  and  technical  help  is  provided  to  the  State  Governments  under  various Centrally Sponsored Schemes, such as 'Project Tiger' and 'Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats' for enhancing the capacity and infrastructure of the State Governments for providing effective protection to wild animals.
9. India has a bilateral understanding with Nepal on controlling trans-boundary illegal trade in wildlife and conservation, apart from a protocol on tiger conservation with China.
10. A protocol has been signed in September, 2011 with Bangladesh for conservation of the Royal Bengal Tiger of the Sunderban.
11. A sub-group on tiger and leopard conservation has been constituted for cooperation with the Russian Federation.  A tripartite MOU between the National Tiger Conservation Authority, Wildlife Institute of India and A.N. Severstov Institute of Ecology & Evaluation was signed on 4.12.2018 for cooperation in scientific research on tigers.
12. India  is  the  founder  member  of  the  Global  Tiger  Forum  of  Tiger  Range  Countries  for addressing international issues related to tiger conservation.
13. An Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of the Republic of India and the Government of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar for Cooperation on Combating Timber  Trafficking,  and  Conservation  of  Tigers  and  other  Wildlife  has  been  signed  on  27 th February, 2020.
14. During the 18 th CoP held at Geneva in August 2019, based on an intervention from India, a slew of decisions were adopted to intervene in territories which had facilities for keeping big cats as a reinforcement of decision 14.69.
15. The 3 rd Asia Ministerial Conference (3 AMC) was organized in New Delhi from 12-14 April  2016.    Inspired by the statement of Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, during this conference that 'conservation of  tigers is not a choice, it is an imperative', to achieve the concrete results  of  ensuring  the  conservation  of  tigers  in  the  wild  and  their  habitats  by  2022,  the representatives of the Governments of the Tiger Range Countries resolved to:
16.  Accelerate implementation of the Global Tiger Recovery Programme (GTRP)/National Tiger Recovery Programme (NTRP) and agreed actions from the above-mentioned declarations, review and update priority and differentiated action plans, and track progress through mutual and systematic reporting and evaluation.
17.  Align development and tiger conservation in a mutually complementary manner by re-orienting development  strategies to mainstream  the  concerns of  tiger conservation, such as by integrating tiger and wildlife safeguards in infrastructure at the  landscape  level,  developing  partnerships  with  business  groups,  and  strong engagement with local stakeholders.
18.  Leverage funding and technical support from international organisations, bilateral and multilateral financial institutions, foundations, civil society organisations, private sector, and climate funds, in addition to TRC governments.
19.  Recognise  and  enhance  the  importance  of  tiger  habitats  by  promoting  them  as providing ecosystem  services,  as  engines  of  economic  growth  and  helping  to address climate   change.
20.  Emphasize recovery of tiger populations in areas with low tiger densities and restoration  in  areas from  which  they  have  been  extirpated  by  using  successful programs of tiger reintroduction and rehabilitation of their habitats and prey.
21.  Strengthen co-operation at the highest levels of government to  combat wildlife crime,  address  the  demand  for  tiger  products,  and  increase  formal  and  informal transboundary coordination.
22.  Enhance  knowledge  sharing  and  capacity  development  for  all  stakeholders and increase the use of technology ,  including  smart  tools,  monitoring protocols, and information systems, to  improve management effectiveness.

16. The Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF) has been made operational in the States of Karnataka  (Bandipur),  Maharashtra  (Pench,  Tadoba-Andhari,  Nawegaon-Nagzira,  Melghat), Rajasthan (Ranthambhore) and Odisha (Similipal), out of 13 initially selected tiger reserves, with 60%  central  assistance  under  the  ongoing  Centrally  Sponsored  Scheme  of  Project  Tiger, Kaziranga (Assam) with 90% central assistance.

17. Generic Guidelines for preparation of reserve specific Security Plan have been prepared which form a basis for antipoaching strategies in the overarching Tiger Conservation Plan.
18. Implementing  a  tripartite  Memorandum  of  Understanding  (MOU)  with  tiger  States, linked to fund flows for effective implementation of tiger conservation initiatives.
19. Steps  taken  for  modernizing  the  infrastructure  and  field  protection,  besides  launching 'Monitoring  system  for  Tigers'  Intensive  Protection  and  Ecological  Status  (M-STrIPES)'  for effective field patrolling and monitoring.  The M-STrIPES application has been made android based with three distinct modules, viz. patrol, ecological and conflict.
20. Initiatives  taken  for  improving  the  field  delivery  through  capacity  building  of  field officials, apart from providing incentives.
21. As a part of active management to rebuild Sariska and Panna Tiger Reserves where tigers had become  locally extinct, reintroduction of tigers have been done. The  successful reintroduction of wild tigers in Panna is a unique example and one of a kind in the world as the rewilded and reintroduced tigresses are breeding.  On the same lines, tigers have also been reintroduced in the western part of the Rajaji Tiger Reserve, Uttarakhand also.
22. The  fourth  round  of  country  level  tiger  status  assessment  completed  in  2018,  with findings indicating an increase with a tiger population estimate of 2967 (lower and upper limits being  2603  and  3346  respectively),  as  compared  to  the  last  country  level  estimation  of  2014, with an estimate of 2226 (lower and upper limits being 1945-2491 tigers), 2010 estimation with an estimation of 1706 (lower and upper limits being 1507-1896) and 2006 estimation, with an estimate of 1411 (lower and upper limits being 1165 and 1657).  At present, India has around 75% of tiger population and its source areas amongst the 13 tiger range countries in the world, owing to its long history of conserving the species through Project Tiger (2.24% of country's geographical area spread out in 51 tiger reserves in 18 States).
23. To assess occupancy of tigers in high altitude landscapes, a collaborative project with the Global Tiger Forum has been initiated.
24. A  report  on  Management  Effectiveness  Evaluation  (MEE)  of  Tiger  Reserves  was released in July, 2019, containing the fourth round of independent assessment based on refined criteria  done  in  2018  for  50  tiger  reserves.    Out  of  50  tiger  reserves,  21  were  rated  as  'very good', 17 as 'good' and 12 as 'fair'.
25. Providing special assistance for mitigation of human-tiger conflicts in problematic areas.
26. Standard  Operating  Procedures  (SOPs)  have  been  issued  in  8  thematic  areas  as  below with inputs from officials and experts, fine tuned to meet the present challenges in the field:-
11. (i) for dealing with tiger death.
12. (ii) to  deal  with  emergency  arising  due  to  straying  of  tigers  in  human  dominated landscape.
13. (iii) for disposing the tiger/leopard carcass/body.
14. (iv) to deal with orphaned / abandoned tiger cubs and old / injured tigers in the wild.
15. (v) to deal with tiger depredation on livestock.
16. (vi) for Interstate Co-ordination amongst tiger reserves that share boundary.
17. (vii) for  active  management  towards  rehabilitation  of  tigers  from  source  areas  at landscape level.
18. (viii) to deal with stray/feral dogs in tiger reserves.
27. Phase-IV  tiger  reserve  level,  continuous  monitoring  of  tigers  using  camera  traps  and building up data on photo captures of individual tigers, has been institutionalized.
28. A national repository of camera trap photo IDs of individual tigers has been created.
29. Supporting  field  level  workshops  for  capacity  building  of  field  officers  to  deal  with straying tigers.
30. On  completion  of  pilot  e-surveillance  project  in  Corbett  Tiger  Reserve  (Uttarakhand), central  assistance  has  been  provided  for  installing  24X7  e-surveillance  at  Kaziranga  Tiger Reserve (Assam) and fringes of Ratapani Wildlife Sanctuary (Madhya Pradesh).
31. Economic  Valuation  of  sixteen  tiger  reserves  done  in  collaboration  with  the  Indian Institute of Forest Management to assess value of the ecosystem services they provide and their potential role in climate change mitigation.
32. Initiated a pilot project on monetizing carbon sequestration to benefit Tiger Conservation Foundations and local in collaboration with TERI.
33. Advice for deployment of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles to aid in field level operations has been issued.
34. Assessment of Status, Density and Change in Forest Cover in and around tiger reserves of the Shivalik Gangetic Plain Landscape done in collaboration with the Forest Survey of India.
35. A joint report of Bangladesh has been brought out on the assessment of tiger status in the Sundarbans.
36. National Tiger  Conservation  Authority and Wildlife  Crime  Control  Bureau  have established an online tiger / wildlife crime tracking / reporting system in tiger reserves.
37. Based  on  International  standards,  security  audit  framework  of  the  NTCA  has  been validated  for  implementing  across  all  tiger reserves.    25  tiger  reserves  have  been  assessed  for their security protocols through this framework.
38. To assess status of tiger bearing areas  outside tiger  reserves,  the  CA|TS  (Conservation Assured|Tiger  Standards)  framework  -an  international  accreditation.  3  sites  accredited  with CA|TS  certification  are  in  India,  namely  the  Ramnagar,  Lansdowne,  Forest  Divisions  in Uttarakhand and 24 South Parganas in West Bengal.  CA|TS has now been extended to tiger reserves and 14 sites namely Manas, Kaziranga, Orang, Satpura, Pench (Maharashtra), Kanha, Panna,  Valmiki,  Dudhwa,  Parambikulam,  Mudumalai,  Bandipur,  Anamalai  and  Sundarbans Tiger Reserves have been accredited with CA|TS recently.

## ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (c) OF THE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3058 ON DECLINE IN POPULATION OF TIGERS DUE FOR REPLY ON 06/08/2021

## Details of funding assistance provided under the ongoing Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Project Tiger to States

| Sl. No.   | State                                      |   2018-19 (Rs. in lakhs) |   2019-20 (Rs. in lakhs) |   2020-21 (Rs. in lakhs) |
|-----------|--------------------------------------------|--------------------------|--------------------------|--------------------------|
| 1         | Andhra Pradesh                             |                   217.99 |                   114.48 |                   266.51 |
| 2         | Arunachal Pradesh                          |                   929.76 |                   846.31 |                   803.76 |
| 3         | Assam                                      |                  1919.62 |                  2198.76 |                  2513.9  |
| 4         | Bihar                                      |                   570.9  |                   562.84 |                   628.89 |
| 5         | Chhattisgarh                               |                   536.14 |                   358.53 |                   471.16 |
| 6         | Jharkhand                                  |                   367    |                  1432.07 |                   128.45 |
| 7         | Karnataka                                  |                  2267.43 |                  2252.03 |                  2118.01 |
| 8         | Kerala                                     |                   653.03 |                   607.07 |                   402.88 |
| 9         | Madhya Pradesh                             |                  5343.89 |                  3501.91 |                  2551.26 |
| 10        | Maharashtra                                |                 11049.6  |                  7220.39 |                  3098.03 |
| 11        | Mizoram                                    |                   318.84 |                   337.7  |                   161.53 |
| 12        | Odisha                                     |                  1022.32 |                  1303.32 |                   680.07 |
| 13        | Rajasthan                                  |                   791.83 |                  1203.19 |                  1008.89 |
| 14        | Tamil Nadu                                 |                  2366.82 |                  1586.91 |                  1336.14 |
| 15        | Telangana                                  |                  1115.65 |                   359.91 |                   351.97 |
| 16        | Uttarakhand                                |                   685.34 |                  1242.49 |                  1671.3  |
| 17        | Uttar Pradesh                              |                  1417.26 |                  2289.18 |                   923.29 |
| 18        | West Bengal                                |                   719.01 |                   758.47 |                   333.96 |
| 19        | Nagaland (IVth All India Tiger Estimation) |                    24.86 |                     0    |                     0    |
|           | Total                                      |                 32317.3  |                 28175.6  |                 19450    |

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