The Royal Bengal Tiger, Panthera
tigris tigris (Linnaeus, 1758), one of the six subspecies of tigers found
on planet Earth, is restricted to the Indian subcontinent and has been accorded
the status of National Animal of India. P. tigris tigris is listed in
Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 and is classified as
Endangered by IUCN. Tigers are listed in Appendix I of CITES, which bans all
international trade for commercial purposes for all member countries to CITES.
The Government of India has taken a
pioneering initiative for conserving its national animal, by launching the
‘Project Tiger’ in 1973. Jim Corbett National Park the first national park of
India, situated in the hill state of Uttarakhand was chosen as
the venue for the inauguration of Project Tiger in India on 1st April 1973.
Aims and Objectives of Project Tiger
a. To identify the factors limiting the growth of tigers in
India and to mitigate them by suitable management.
b. To rectify the damage done to tiger habitat and facilitate
the recovery of the ecosystem to the maximum possible extent.
c. To augment tiger conservation in specially constituted
‘tiger reserves’, falling in regions within India
d. To maintain a viable tiger population in the natural
environment for its scientific,
economic, aesthetic, cultural and ecological values
e. To
preserve, for all times, areas of such biological importance as a national
heritage
for the benefit, education
and enjoyment of the people for generations to
come.
a.
Establishment
of Tiger Reserves: Wild tigers are found in 18 of our States, viz.
Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand,
Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Odisha, Rajasthan,
Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
Project Tiger is being implemented in all these States in collaboration with
the respective State Governments. From 9 tiger reserves since its
formative years, the Project Tiger coverage has increased to 49 at present
(as on 17 March, 2016)
covering a total area of 70244.10 sq.km
of the country.
b. Core /buffer strategy: The tiger
reserves are constituted on a core/buffer strategy. The core areas have the
legal status of a national park or a sanctuary, whereas the buffer or
peripheral areas are a mix of forest and non-forest land, managed as a multiple
use area. The Project Tiger aims to foster an exclusive tiger agenda in the
core areas of tiger reserves, with an inclusive people oriented agenda in the
buffer.
c. National Tiger Conservation Authority:
For strengthening the conservation of Tiger in India a National Tiger Conservation
Authority, a statutory body under the Ministry of Environment, Forests and
Climate Change was constituted by the amendment of the Wildlife (Protection)
Act, 1972, in 2006. The overall administration of the project is monitored by a
Steering committee. A Field Director is
appointed for each reserve, who is assisted by the field and technical
personnel. At the centre, a full-fledged Director
of the project coordinates the work for the country.
d. Tiger census: The All India tiger estimation is carried
out once in every four years. Based on the Tiger Task Force approval, a
refined double sampling method using camera traps in a statistical framework
was first used in 2006 country level tiger assessment. The success of Project
Tiger can be gauged from the fact that the population of Tigers in India has
increased from about 1,200 in 1973 to an impressive 2,226 as per the latest
census report released on 20 January 2015 based on the last census carried out
in 2014.
e. Tiger protection force:
Project Tiger has also established the Tiger Protection Force with the aim of
catching poachers and stopping the killing.
Tiger Reserves of North
East India
Seven
protected areas shown in the table below have been designated as Tiger Reserves
in three states (Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Mizoram) of North East India
under the Project Tiger Initiative.
Sl No
|
Name of Tiger
Reserve
|
State
|
Core Area sq.km
|
Buffer area
Sq.km
|
Total area
Sq.km
|
1
|
Namdapha
|
Arunachal
Pradesh
|
1807.82
|
245
|
2052.82
|
2
|
Pakke
|
Arunachal
Pradesh
|
683.45
|
515
|
1198.45
|
3
|
Manas
|
Assam
|
840.04
|
2310.88
|
3150.92
|
4
|
Nameri
|
Assam
|
200
|
144
|
344
|
5
|
Orang
|
Assam
|
79.28
|
413.18
|
492.46
|
6
|
Kaziranga
|
Assam
|
625.58
|
548
|
1173.58
|
7
|
Dampa
|
Mizoram
|
500
|
488
|
988
|
The Core and Buffer areas of the Tiger Reserves of
Assam are detailed as follows
Kaziranga Tiger Reserve
Core
Area: Kaziranga National Park including its 1st,
2nd, 3rd and 5th additions to its area
Buffer
Area: 4th and 6th additions to KNP,
Kukurakata RF, Panbari RF, Bagser RF, Laokhowa WLS and Burachapori WLS.
Manas Tiger Reserve
Core
Area: Manas National Park and Barnadi Wildlife Sanctuary
Buffer
Area: Reserved Forests of Kachugaon, Haltugaon, Dhirang
and Dhansiri Territorial divisions of Bodoland Territorial Areas District Areas
along the Indo Bhutan International Boundary
Nameri Tiger Reserve:
Core
Area: The existing Nameri National Park
Buffer
Area: On the east the Naduar Reserve Forest upto
Ghiladhari River (80 sq.km.) and the Balipara Reserve Forest on the west upto
Rangapara Bhalukpong railway line totaling 64 sq.km
Orang Tiger Reserve:
Core
Area: The existing Orang (now Rajiv Gandhi) National
Park
Buffer
Area: The eastern boundary touches the western boundary
of the proposed 1st addition to Burhachapori WLS, the southern
boundary is formed by the south bank of river Brahmaputra adjacent to the
national Park, while the western and northern boundaries are marked by the
Hazaribagh camp and Kachariveti camp of Orang Tiger Reserve respectively.
