india's tiger crisis

The story of the vanishing tigers of India is a crisis way beyond the environment. The royal Bengal tiger, now down to a mere 1400 in number has fallen prey to a crippling crisis of governance and astounding indifference towards this magnificent big cat.
The failure shows that in India governance in tiger conservation has nothing to do with ground realities. For years, project tiger flogged the myth of 4000 plus cats when it was clear from habitat loss and rare sightings that the number was fictional. The bureaucratic stonewalling resulted in a lost decade when action should have taken place to ensure tiger numbers do not reach what many scientists consider a critical low. It is shameful that the number of tigers today is lower than at the time of the launch of project tiger. At that time, there were an estimated 1800 tigers in India.

It took the Indian express to expose the lie in Sariska. The Prime Minister's subsequent intervention hasn't done much beyond ensuring that a scientifically sound count takes place.

A combination of four factors has decimated the tiger in India.

Indian forest were opened for "development" through an amendment to the Indian conservation act in late 1990's under the regime of Narsimha Rao. India is fast realizing that economic development cannot come without costs - and in this case it costs the pelt of the tiger. The loss of habitat and prey is killing more tigers than poaching.


The second reason is that at the level of the states the tiger simply is not a priority. In Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, for instance there are an estimated 1200 vacancies for forests guards and it is there not surprising that the state faces the specter of empty forests. Ranthmbore and Bandhavgrah have seen the most decline in numbers. What is more, the Indian forest act is toothless and even third time offenders get quick bail in poaching cases. The law needs to be tightened up as a priority.

The third complexity in the tiger puzzle is external. China and Tibet remain the world's largest consumers of tiger parts. It is such an ingrained part of the Chinese culture that in that country tiger farms - akin to a poultry complex - tigers are raised and butchered exist as a routine. Tiger is on the menu across China - especially in prosperous coastal towns. It is estimated that 70 percent of the worldwide trade in tiger parts ends up in China and the rest in other Chinese hands in south East Asia.

The fourth less studied problem for the tiger turned out to be so called scientists and conversations who work in its name. None of them stuck close to the knitting. Instead of scientific research and conservation they branched out into the hotel and resort business. Most of the famous name you here talking tiger have their own resorts - some in brazen violence of environmental laws. Few of these were even demolished for illegal construction in Ranthmbore, Panna and elsewhere. The costs of maintaining bureaucracies like the world wildlife fund with its fat salaries far outweighs any success they may have achieved. The tiger mafia is the least explored but most immediate threat to tiger survival.


So is it too late? Maybe not. But tough calls need to be taken. It is now clear that tigers and humans cannot coexist. There is need to ensure that India spends money in relocating people out of tiger zones where possible. All success like Corbett and Nagaerhole are in places with the minimum human interference. The law needs more teeth. An urgent diplomatic effort with China in world fora is critical for the short term survival of tigers. The corrupt tiger NGO's need to be brought to book with none spared. All this will need political will and economic resources to come together. It is now time to ensure that the second rung parks such as those in Karnataka get the best protection. Tiger are big cats and they reproduce fast - if a stable environment is put in place. This can make tiger revival a possibility. Lastly African style high value tourism model should be adopted to fund sustainable tiger conservation. Today too many tourists are having a free ride in tiger parks. In 1947 we had 50,000 tigers in India if you want the next generation of Indian to see the tiger's unforgettable gait in the jungle civil society will have to force the political class to act. And in India that is a tough call especially when time is as critically short as in the case of the tiger.

indian forests in terminal crisis

Ever since the mid 1990’s when the Narsimha rao government amended the conservation act and threw India’s forests open for commercial purposes including mining, the forest cover has be rapidly dwindling. On the face of it a one time loss due to the tsunami and gains in some states seem to point to an environment balance. There is still a sizable loss of 728 sq kilometers of forests and degradation of another 630 square kilometers throughout India. Thus when one looks at the latest state of the forest report the devil is found in the details.

A lot of the blame lies with corporate India whether it is setting up a bauxite mine over a tiger forest in orrissa or a power plant in Madhya Pradesh. So much so that a supreme court appointed committee had recently ordered canceling of 49 projects on forest land that had seemingly got relevant clearance.
The most serious loss of forest cover is in states such as Andeman and Nicobar and Assam along with Manipur and Madhya Pradesh. These very states were previously thought to be green cover bastions and are the ones which have shown most forest loss. One can safely add Arunachal Pradesh to that list. That sate is India as it used to be, with 83 per cent forest cover. However the recently announced package by the Prime Minister that calls for 10,000 crore invested in roads and railways across the state is bound to degrade forest cover here.

The reason why forests matter even in this age of globalization is three folds. For on thing Indian forest is a source for more than 250 million tribal and non tribal persons across the country. Forest products by value constitute more then $45 billion annually to India’s economy including timber and non timber products and proactive large scale employment. Lastly India is home to one of the world most diverse fauna and flora which if not nurtured could be lost for ever.

The real story of the forest loss of India is in its imbalance. Over the last twenty years the continuing erosion of forests in Central and north India has meant that the north east of India that has only 7 per cent of India landmass has in more than 25 % of her forest cover. This imbalance has created vast swaths of India without significant forest cover. The related f\degradation of river and outer resources is most immediate here.

A new law to empower tribal to have right to forest produce and land has divided the conservation community. Some believe that this may be death knell of the forests as viable cover as well as the tiger. Past record however suggests that such a doomsday scenario is misplaced. If anything the Gandhian idea of self reliance is more relevant today then ever before in the context of tribal rights over the forests. The tribal, once having ownership, is likely to use the forest as resource not as something to plunder on the sly. The empowered tribal and sensible regulations can together save the last of India’s forest cover. India and the world will be worse off if the forest s is not saved through political will directed at arresting the current slide.