The Odisha Forest Department has again refused to buy the National Tiger Conservation Authority’s (NTCA) story regarding the number of tigers in the State. Brushing aside the NTCA’s report which had estimated that Odisha has 28 tigers, it claimed that the State is now house to 60 tigers in its sanctuaries and forests. The department claimed it has photos and data about the presence of 60 tigers in the Forest Ranges of Kuldiha, Hadgarh, Satkosia and Athagarh besides the Similipal Tiger Reserve.
Departmental officials informed that the NTCA had conducted its enumeration of tigers by installing trap cameras in Similipal in three phases. Before completion of all the phases, the NTCA published its report, as a result of which Odisha’s tiger number was below the expectation, the officials added. Earlier, the NTCA had clarified that its report was final and its enumerated number of big cats was correct in the case of Odisha.