The population of tigers has increased in India from 1,706 in 2011 to 2,226 in 2014, according to the Government’s Tiger census figures, released by Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar today. Much of the credit must go to the sterling work of the protection staff, who daily battle the forces of doom, destruction, apathy and corruption.
Karnataka, with part of the great Western Ghats and its famous Bandipur and Nagarhole tiger reserves has the highest number of tigers at 408 tigers followed by 340 in Uttarakhand, where Corbett Tiger reserve protects the great majority, then 308 in Madhya Pradesh with its six tiger reserves including Bandhavgrah and Kanha, followed by 229 in Tamil Nadu, 190 in parks like Tadoba and Pench in Maharashtra, 167 in Kaziranga and Manas in Assam, 136 in the Kerala and 117 in Uttar Pradesh.
There is also a little loved and largely unrecognised industry that can take some justifiable pride in these figures too, (particularly as it was only two years ago it was being accused of killing tigers and being banned from parks!). Large population increases have been seen in parks with corresponding large visitor numbers. It’s no coincidence.
Today, as these figures conclusively prove, nature tourism providing the invaluable economic imperative, the myriad of local jobs, and the millions of passionate advocates for the parks that still harbour the greatest densities of tigers in India.
There is a rapidly expanding market for nature travellers, each willing to pay to see their wild heritage, be it wild tigers, herds of elephant or unspoilt beaches where Olive Ridley turtles can nest. The market is growing at up to 25 per cent per annum in parts of India, with over three millions people a year partaking. A TOFTigers’ study in 2010 concluded that a single tiger in a well visited reserve is now worth an estimated US$750,000 per year in tourism revenues. When it only costs a few thousand dollars a year to preserve a tiger in the wild, this huge rate of return – the ROI in economist’s jargon – is a figure no Government can ignore.
