Ten tiger reserves - including Simplipal, Indrawati and Dudhwa - have reported a drop in tiger count in the latest census, highlighting a new crisis in India's efforts to preserve its tigers.The government is likely to declare the results of the lastest census only next year. Meanwhile, the method of tiger count itself continues to remain a controversial issue. The Environment Ministry, in an effort to avoid false reporting, has changed the entire system of tiger count from this year. Called the 'Framework for estimation of tiger populations of India', the job of tiger census is now in the hands of India's premier research body, the Wildlife Institute of India.
Under the new method being used, estimates of not just tigers but also their prey base -- which includes ungulates such as deer and chinkara -- are also made. But the new method is not without problems. A report of the World Conservation Union, points out serious problems in this new methodology. Based on an assessment made by WCU, the report states that the exact number of tigers cannot be deduced on the basis of the presence and absence data as it can lead to over-reporting. Also, this process of tiger count ignores poaching, the report points out. The new method has also reported tigers from non-forest areas, which may be false data, the world conservation body says, adding that the new method does not take into account tiger deaths or poaching which is one of the major threats to the species in India.
Tiger is present only in 7 per cent of India's total geographical area. As its numbers crash, it is clear that the tiger has not only become India's most endangered but also perhaps the most controversial cat. If urgent steps are not taken, scientists say it may be gone within the next decade. Wildlife conservationists say the government is not willing to acknowledge the real problem. The new methodology is a mere eyewash, they claim.
Links to find more resources:
http://www.projecttiger.nic.in
http://www.eia-international.org/campaigns/species/tigers/
