Tiger Conservation in India : the Past, Present and the Future

The tiger, which evolved \in China and entered the Indian subcontinent through the Assam gateway tens of thousands of years ago, thrived well in the forested habitats of India feeding on cervids, bovids and wild pig. The first threat to the survival of tiger came with the arrival of the British, who brought in matchlocks and rifles, as well as health care, enabling people to conquer diseases. The resulting rapid increase in human population led to the clearing of vast tracts of forests. However, the British also took several measures to protect forests, such as enactment of Forest Act of 1878, which highlighted the urgent need for saving forests and wildlife. It was under the British rule that wildlife sanctuaries were first established. The darkest period in the history of conservation in India was between 1940 and 1970, when large-scale developmental projects, and increased and unabated killing, led to enormous destruction of wildlife. Nevertheless, these developments eventually led to the total ban on tiger hunting, promulgation of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 and the birth of Project Tiger in 1973. It is true that but for Project Tiger, the tiger would have come close to extinction in India; its present status in the country (ca.2000 animals), according to our estimate, is comparable to the assessment made when Project Tiger was born. Saving the tiger would need, on a priority basis, the establishment of an effective Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, with national a. international support, to break the spine of the wildlife trade. Above all, no one can deny the fact that the future of the tiger and the associated species can be ensured only when, by promoting voluntary resettlements of people from protected areas, we make at least one per cent of the country's landmass, covering the prime tiger habitats, inviolate within a prescribed period. We should make a beginning in the first six ranked Tiger Conservation Units (TCUs) which have better chances of saving tiger for posterity with a greater emphasis on the first three ranked TCUs. Securing one percent of the landscape inviolate will be a challenging and an expensive task, but the long-lasting ecological and conservation benefits would be enormous.