New Delhi: The upcoming 29th of July is International Tigers Day. Its main event in the country is proposed this time in the Corbett Tiger Reserve of Uttarakhand. But just before Global Tigers Day, such news has come, which has faded the enthusiasm for the preparations for this event. The news is that this year there has been a sudden jump in the death toll of tigers. In the first six months of the year, this figure has reached close to 100. Due to this, there has been a stir in three states of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Uttarakhand, which are in the top three in terms of death.
Let us tell you that on the completion of 50 years of Project Tiger, in April this year, the tiger census figures for 2022 were released by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. According to this, since the year 2018, there has been an increase of two hundred tigers in the tiger population in the country. But this happiness did not last long, because half of its tigers died in the first six months of this year. According to the National Tiger Conservation Authority, till June 25 this year, 95 tiger deaths have been recorded across the country. Of these, a maximum of 24 tigers died in Madhya Pradesh, 19 tigers in Maharashtra, and 14 tigers in Uttarakhand. The Central Forest Ministry, which swung into action after this worrying news came to the fore, has ordered an inquiry in all the states. An inquiry has also been set up by the Uttarakhand Wildlife Department.
Director General, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India, CP Goyal says that along with the increase in population, the pressure of encroachment on forests is increasing. Nevertheless, orders have been given to the state governments to investigate the death of tigers. Sameer Sinha, Chief Wildlife Warden of Uttarakhand, says that it is definitely worrying. An inquiry has been ordered into it. However, Sameer Sinha also says that according to the increasing population of tigers in Uttarakhand, this number is not much. Nevertheless, the reasons are being deeply investigated. If we look at the figures for the past years, three tigers died in Uttarakhand in 2021 and six in 2022. But, in 2023, the death of 14 tigers in six months naturally troubled everyone.
Uttarakhand ranks third in the country in terms of the number of tigers – according to the 2018 census, Madhya Pradesh is at the top with 526 tigers. Karnataka is in second place, the number of tigers in Karnataka is -524. Whereas Uttarakhand is in third place, the number of tigers here is 442. Although, after 2018, the figures of the census done in 2022 have been released in April 2023, the state-wise breakup has not been released yet. This may have to wait for now.
In Uttarakhand, a maximum of seven tigers have died outside the Tiger Reserve in the Kumaon region. Whereas, five tigers died in Corbett Tiger Reserve and two tigers died in Rajaji Tiger Reserve. Recently, an injured tigress was also found in the Kalgarh range of Corbett, whose noose of iron wire was sunk around the abdomen. Due to this, it was feared whether hunters are active in Corbett.
