Lok Sabha Question No. 296 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2015-12-01
Subject: Estimates of Tigers
Ministry: ENVIRONMENT,  FORESTS AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Asked by: PRATHAP SIMHA

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 296 TO BE ANSWERED ON 01.12.2015

## Estimates of Tigers

## 296. SHRI PRATHAP SIMHA:

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

- (a) whether the tiger population in the country is rapidly dwindling and if so, the details thereof, tiger reserve-wise;
- (b) whether  the  Government  is  using  camera  trapping  method  over  the  pug  mark  method  for conducting estimates of tigers in the country;
- (c) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor; and
- (d) the efforts taken or being taken by Government to improve wild life habitat so that spill over animals could reclaim the forest?

## ANSWER

MINISTER  OF  STATE  (INDEPENDENT  CHARGE)  FOR  ENVIRONMENT,  FOREST  AND CLIMATE CHANGE

## (SHRI PRAKASH JAVADEKAR)

- (a) No Sir.  The assessment of the status of tigers, co-predators and their prey 2014 using the refined  methodology  has  shown  a  countrywide  30%  increase  in  tiger  numbers  with  an estimated number of 2226 (range 1945-2491) as compared to 2010 estimation of 1706 (range 1520-1909  tigers).    The  details  of  tiger  estimation  pertaining  to  tiger  landscapes  in  the country for the years 2010 and 2014 are at Annexure-I .
- (b) & (c) Yes Sir.  The current methodology of tiger estimation uses a double sampling approach to estimate the distribution and abundance of tigers in India, wherein robust spatially explicit capture  recapture  protocols  using  joint  models  have  been  employed.    As  first  component, information  is  collected  in  first  phase  by  ground  surveys  for  determining  occupancy  of habitat  patches  by  tigers  and  other  predators,  line  transects  to  estimate  prey  abundance, sampling  plots  on  the  line  transects  to  assess  (habitat  characteristics,  human  impacts  and prey dung density).

Alongwith  the  information  generated  by  the  ground  surveys,  latest  remotely  sensed data  on  (a)  landscape  characteristics,  (b)  human  'foot-print',  and  (c)  habitat  attributes  are subsequently used to model tiger occupancy and abundance.

The second component of the double sampling consists of (a) scientifically rigorous abundance  estimation  in  select  sampling  units  using  a  remote  camera  trap  based  capture recapture technique for estimating tiger and other carnivore abundance and (b) line transect based Distance sampling for estimating prey abundance.

- (d) Funding assistance is provided to the tiger reserves based on their Annual Plan of Operation as per the provisions of approved Tiger Conservation Plan, for various activities, which inter alia, includes habitat improvement works like weed eradication, removal of gregarious plant growth from grasslands, grass improvement, water retention structures and the like, besides for  voluntary  village  relocation  of  people  living  in  'core  or  critical  tiger  habitats'  and fostering corridor conservation through restorative strategy to arrest habitat fragmentation.

## ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) OF THE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 296 ON ESTIMATES OF TIGERS DUE FOR REPLY ON 01.12.2015.

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

|                                                                      | Tiger Population   | Tiger Population   |                              |
|----------------------------------------------------------------------|--------------------|--------------------|------------------------------|
| State                                                                | 2010               | 2014               | Increase / Decrease / Stable |
| Shivalik-Gangetic Plain Landscape Complex                            |                    |                    |                              |
| Uttarakhand                                                          | 227 (199-256)      | 340                | Increase                     |
| Uttar Pradesh                                                        | 118 (113-124)      | 117                | Stable                       |
| Bihar                                                                | 8 (-)              | 28                 | Increase                     |
| Shivalik Gangetic                                                    | 353 (320-388)      | 485 (427-543)      | Increase                     |
| Central Indian Landscape Complex and Eastern Ghats Landscape Complex |                    |                    |                              |
| Andhra Pradesh (including Telangana)                                 | 72 (65-79)         | 68                 | Stable                       |
| Chhattisgarh                                                         | 26 (24-27)         | 46                 | Increase                     |
| Madhya Pradesh                                                       | 257 (213-301)      | 308                | Increase                     |
| Maharashtra                                                          | 169 (155-183)      | 190                | Increase                     |
| Odisha                                                               | 32 (20-44)         | 28                 | Stable                       |
| Rajasthan                                                            | 36 (35-37)         | 45                 | Increase                     |
| Jharkhand                                                            | 10 (6-14)          | 3+                 | Decrease*                    |
| Central India                                                        | 601 (518-685)      | 688 (596-780)      | Increase                     |
| Western Ghats Landscape Complex                                      |                    |                    |                              |
| Karnataka                                                            | 300 (280-320)      | 406                | Increase                     |
| Kerala                                                               | 71 (67-75)         | 136                | Increase                     |
| Tamil Nadu                                                           | 163 (153-173)      | 229                | Increase                     |
| Goa                                                                  | -                  | 5                  | Increase                     |
| Western Ghats                                                        | 534 (500-568)      | 776 (685-861)      | Increase                     |
| North Eastern Hills and Brahmaputra Flood Plains                     |                    |                    |                              |
| Assam                                                                | 143 (113-173)      | 167                | Increase                     |
| Arunachal Pradesh                                                    | -                  | 28 ♣               | Increase                     |
| Mizoram                                                              | 5                  | 3+                 | Stable                       |
| North West Bengal                                                    | -                  | 3                  | **                           |
| North East Hills, and Brahmaputra                                    | 148 (118-178)      | 201 (174-212)      | Increase                     |
| Sunderbans                                                           | 70 (64-90)         | 76 (92-96)         | Stable                       |
| TOTAL                                                                | 1706 (1520-1909)   | 2226 (1945-2491)   | Increase                     |