Tiger population has increased to 'nearly 2500' claims Prakash Javadekar

Union minister for environment, forest and climate change Prakash Javadekar claimed on Tuesday that two years after the 2014 tiger estimation study concluded that there 2,226 tigers in the country, their numbers are increased to approximately 2,500. Javadekar said, "Last two years, the number is rising and our rough estimate at this moment is that we have nearly 2500 tigers." Javadekar was speaking ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the 3rd Asia Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation.

While claiming that tiger numbers have shown an upward trend, Javadekar did not specify which tiger reserves in the country have registered a rise in numbers.

When dna spoke on the issue to Bishan Singh Bonal, additional director general (Project Tiger) and member secretary, National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), he said, "After estimating population of tigers in Phase-III of tiger monitoring programme tiger reserves across each state are to monitor tiger populations using camera trap images in Phase-IV. States like Maharashtra have done a study across almost all of their tiger reserves and this exercise helps to confirm existence or increasing trends and you can extrapolate."

The estimation of tigers and their monitoring happens in four phases. They are divided into assessment of tiger, co-predators, prey and habitat in tiger states once in every four years using the double sampling method, assimilation of spatial and attributes data, estimation of population and its prey and in Phase-Iv states are to monitor the tiger population using camera traps to maintain a databse.

The minister's claims though seems to be based only on limited data and especially from states where extensive camera trapping exercises have been carried out while leaving out tiger reserves that have shown a downward trend. A wildlife biologist and activist who has worked on camera trapping in Maharashtra and other states following the 2014 estimation said that the claims seem to only show an incomplete picture.

"One has to take the claims with a pinch of salt. Only Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka have carried out significant camera trapping exercises following the 2014 estimation and these states have always had healthy tiger populations. There are states such as Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha where populations are showing downward trends and even that needs to be accounted for before extrapolating that there is an increase in numbers," the activist said on the condition of anonymity.

The global conference also saw Prime Minister Narendra Modi stressing the need to end trafficking of wildlife body parts. "Demand for body parts and wildlife trafficking is a major threat to this magnificent animal. We need to co-operate on this serious issue at the highest level and India has zero tolerance against wildlife crimes such as poaching," said PM Modi.