- The mere mention of a tiger sends a shiver down one’s spine and a sense of excitement. For the bulk of onlookers, the sight of the majestic beast royally ambling across is already breathtaking. The large cat invariably inspires admirable awe. However, there are many reasons why the tiger population is declining, including poaching and killing, which has brought the priceless animal dangerously close to extinction. As is its wont, the global community woke up to the crises and initiated moves to ensure one of its kind beasts don’t get lost even as humankind endures unprecedented developments encroaching into forests. Most welcomingly, India as a country is at the forefront to ensure the tiger does not go the way of other extinct animals.
PC: freepik
- The Indian initiative to not only conserve the tiger species but also ensure the population thrives was a major push that deserves wholesome accolades. One such initiative is the 50-year-old Project Tiger. Setting aside political one-upmanship, respective governments at the Centre have contributed to ensuring the tiger population survives facing several odds. As you are aware, Prime Minister Modi recently launched the International Big Cats Alliance at an event to commemorate 50 years of Project Tiger, one of the most successful stories in the global wildlife conservation movement. The new effort to conserve the world’s seven major cats – tiger, lion, leopard, snow leopard, cheetah, puma, and jaguar – will have a positive spin-off on forest conservation.
- Notably, PM Modi observed that India’s policy approach has been to sidestep framing the issue as an ecology versus economy one. The policy recognizes their interlinkage. However, if this approach is to be truly meaningful, two laws that enable the coexistence of ecology and the economy need a lot more work. In December 2021, a bill to update the 50-year-old Wild Life (Protection) Act was introduced in Parliament. Before receiving presidential confess a year later, the bill was scrutiny by a standing committee of the legislature. During that time, wildlife organizations provided feedback. A future revision of this law should include some of these suggestions for wildlife corridors. Nothing wrong with that.
PC: freepik
- Remember, human-animal conflict is a serious problem that can undermine efforts such as Project Tiger. If there is a more feasible method of restricting human presence in corridors by including stakeholders there, the conflict can be reduced. Without their assistance,there is no way to fix the problem. On March 29, the Lok Sabha heard the introduction of the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill. The scrutiny reveals that it has far too many exemptions that will open the door to human activity in forests aggravating human-animal conflict manifolds. We need to properly protect our forests if we want to expand on Project Tiger’s achievements. Imperatively, the contributions should come from every stakeholder. Without further ado, that effort will also rub off on the economy.
