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‘Before I tell you what Project Tiger is all about let me turn the clock back to the beginning of the 19th century. The tiger population in India was 40,000. India’s national animal was ruling the forests majestically.
Let’s get back to the year 1970, the tiger population in India had crashed down to a mere 1,800. Tragic, to put it mildly.
What was the reason behind this tragic fall in the tiger population?
In pre-independent India, the tiger was the prize trophy of royal hunts. The lush green forests in India were happy hunting grounds for the royalty and the white sahibs, for anyone who could lever a gun,
from the dollar tourists to the local hero. Nets were laid, traps were set, shots were fired, and the tigers were no more. The tradition continued until one fine day the big cat found a powerful saviour in the late Prime Minster,
Mrs. Indira Gandhi.
Gandhi imposed a ban on tiger shooting and piloted the Wildlife Protection Act and presto! born was ‘Project Tiger’ in the year 1973!
Habitats were identified and nine tiger reserves declared to protect 16,399 sq kms. of forest land. The reserves were revered and the tiger flourished, its numbers doubling to 4,000 in the next 15 years.
The elation did not last long. Came the 1990s, and the majestic cat faced the guns once again and that too with a vengeance. Wild tigers were massacred to feed the demand for tiger skins and bones. Would you believe it --
just one brewery in Taiwan was illegally importing 2,000 kgs of bones for tiger bone wine and India was the main raw material source.
What was the impact of this gruesome trade? In the Rathambore Tiger Reserve the tiger population dipped from 45 to less than 20.
Is Project tiger a failure then? Would the tiger survive this crisis?
Well, it has!
The tiger reserve network has been expanded to 28 reserves covering 37,761 sq kms. of forest land. Habitats such as Rajaji, Corbett, Dudhwa, Valmiki in the north and Kanha, Melghat, Satpura, Tadoba and Pench in western India have
been identified for conservation by the World Wildlife Fund. But more wildlife conservation laws and awareness among people is still required to make Indian sanctuaries a safe haven for tigers.
Protecting its habitat the Project has served as an umbrella under which numerous other species survive. Give it wild spaces, protect it fiercely and the tiger will thrive.
Can the massacre of the national heritage, (or should I say world heritage?) that the tiger undoubtedly is, continue?
No, let us raise our voice and word, world over, and protect the tiger, the prince of the jungle can, and must, reign supreme in its kingdom.
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