Facing extinction

TIGER UNDER ATTACK!

By Murli

Valmik Thapar, perhaps India's best known wildlife conservationist and an expert on tigers and their habitat, has been the country's most vocal crusader for the cause of the endangered animal. "I am not a pied piper for the tiger. Saving the tiger is a battle and we need an army of dedicated people to achieve this," he once told an audience at the Bombay Natural History Society, the country's oldest NGO. BBC TV viewers will know Thapar as the presenter and author of the acclaimed BBC televison series - Land of the Tiger: A Natural History of the Indian Subcontinent.

India claims two-thirds of the tiger population of the world. Of the eight subspecies of the tiger, three -- the Caspian, Bali and Javan tigers -- are already extinct. The position of the South China subspecies is perilous; the Siberian, Sumatran tiger population is very low; and the Indo-Chinese and Bengal tiger habitat is so little in some areas that they face the threat of inbreeding and subsequent genetic disorders.

Though India accounts for more than 3,750 tigers -- sixty per cent of the world's tiger population -- it loses about 250 tigers every year. The figure could be alarmingly high. A weak information system results in many unreported tiger deaths. According to Thapar, the country is facing its worst ever crisis. He has been urging the government to take a more pro-active role in Project Tiger, but feels little is being done.

The government, on the other hand, maintains there has been no lack of effort towards the conservation of the tiger. The Centre-sponsored Project Tiger -- a massive conservation programme, launched in the early seventies, has been its most visible effort. With 23 tiger reserves, Project Tiger claims it has proved a success. An official release says, from 1,800 animals in 1972-1973, the tiger count has now risen to 4,000.
However, critics think otherwise. According to conservationist Billy Arjan Singh, the project was initially a success while it was a species-oriented project, but progressively registered failure when academics of preserving the ecosystem replaced the symbolic value of the tiger. Singh believes that even the temporary increases in tiger population were caused by immigration due to destruction and degradation of its habitat in Nepal, and not to the widely acclaimed success of wildlife policy in India.

Thapar mirrors Singh's cynicism, and says the Project needs an overhaul and maintains that the Project has not evolved in accordance with the changing habitat of the tiger.

In the '90s, the demand for tiger parts for Oriental medicines resulted in increased poaching. Indian tiger parts were much desired because China's dwindling tiger population threatened the manufacture of such medicines. More so because in the last 25 years China suffered a greater loss in its tiger population than any other country. The rise in human and cattle population and the subsequent degradation of forest area has further resulted in reduced numbers.

Poaching remains the single largest threat towards tiger conservation. The Wildlife Protection Society of India puts the figures at 73 casualties in 1997. High density tiger areas like Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Orissa, West Bengal, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh are most susceptible to poachers. Pitted against the poacher's sophisticated weapons, the forest department is handicapped by infrastructure problems. Among other things, we do not have the required manpower. To expect a forest guard to protect 15 square kilometres under his jurisdiction armed with just a danda is ridiculous.

Forest guards work under difficult conditions. They often remain on duty for all of 24 hours, through the month. Since there are no medical, educational or social facilities in his spot in the forest, he is compelled to live away from his family. Helpless against the might of the poachers, incidents have been reported where forest guards have had their toes chopped, even their bodies hacked in the line of duty. At times forest officers get entangled in legal wrangles with poachers and timber merchants.

The structure of Project Tiger is such that the Government of India does not have final authority over the various reserves. The tiger reserves fall under the jurisdiction of the respective state governments, which oversees the administration of the reserves. The center allocates funds to the state governments, but often funds do not percolate to the areas of requirement in the tiger reserves.

Wildlife critics maintain that the ministry of environment and forests is not equipped to handle the pressures and demands of forests and wildlife. The government should create a new ministry for natural treasury, suggests Thapar. At present wildlife falls under the ministry of environment and forests. It is time environment and subjects like pollution were separated from forests.

Fifty per cent of India's tiger population falls outside the protected area network. Inflicted with problems like schemes that go implemented, vehicles that cannot be repaired, and a severe resource crunch, the 23 tiger reserves have lost their sheen.

Custom authorities in India multiply poaching offences by ten to estimate the actual figure of illegal trade. On this premise, the Wildlife Protection Society of India indicates credibly that at least one tiger is killed by poachers every day. Though Indian wildlife protection laws are considered amongst the most stringent in the world, the lack of a trained enforcement staff force has rendered these laws weak, almost non existent, according to an official associated with Project Tiger.

Agreeing that the onus of saving the tiger does not entirely depend on the government's initiative, conservationists believe that NGOs should change their role and take a more active role.

The tiger is a symbol of our biodiversity. If it is allowed to become extinct, it will spell disaster for a host of other fauna and flora. Vital water catchments will be lost, affecting the lives of millions who depend on natural resources for their very survival.

If action is not taken immediately, the tiger will become extinct in the wild. There is no dispute about it. With sixty per cent of one of the world's tigers, India is privileged -- and perhaps the most rightful claimant to having it as its national animal. A good enough reason to stop regarding it as a mere symbol and ensuring its survival.