The tiger is generally considered a big cat of the plains and hilly Terai region in Uttarakhand but camera trapping of tigers in the high mountainous regions of Uttarakhand in recent years has given wildlife enthusiasts a cause to celebrate.
Having been camera trapped in mountainous areas in Nainital and Pithoragarh districts in the past couple of years, the latest camera trapping of a tiger has been reported from yet another Himalayan region located in the Kedarnath wildlife sanctuary. Diverse opinions are being expressed on this trend with a section welcoming it as a revival of tiger presence in the mountains where they were not uncommon about 100 years ago. On the other hand, a section of foresters state that though the tiger may not have been photographed in the mountainous regions for many decades till recently, the presence and movement of the big cat was known to have continued in these regions albeit in fewer numbers and lesser frequency.
The movement of the big cat in the Himalayan region had been played down by the authorities due to various factors. Apart from the frequent reports of tiger sightings by nomadic herders, a series of tiger sightings substantiated with photographic evidence since 2014 till recently has landed some sections of official machinery in a quandary.
The revival of tiger presence in the mountains can be viewed as a good sign and attributed to factors, including increased tiger population. On the other hand, some ambitious ‘developmental’ plans and projects of the Government, especially in the infrastructure and tourism sectors, may actually end up creating a situation detrimental to revival of tiger presence in the mountains.
Camera traps installed at locations like Kedarnath wildlife sanctuary area captured a somewhat partial photograph of a tiger which was discovered a couple of days ago. Forest officials state that this is a matter for study to ascertain presence and frequency of tiger movements in the Himalayan region. On condition of anonymity, a senior forest official said that this trend is being handled cautiously for some years now due to varied reasons. Camera traps had ascertained movements of more than one tiger in mountainous areas of Nainital district in the past while earlier this year during January-February, tiger presence was also ascertained in the Askot sanctuary area in the mountains of Pithoragarh district.
The official said, “The tiger was not uncommon in the Himalayan region till about 100 years ago but the total tiger population in the country was estimated to be about 40,000. Since then, considering the drastic drop in tiger population and habitat destruction, the movement of tigers has shriveled greatly. The authorities preferred to keep this a low key affair stating that publicising tiger presence in the mountainous may give rise to various contentious issues in a region already known for rising human-wildlife conflict involving leopards, wild boar and simians.
During all these years, tiger sightings were reported on and off but it was not publicized because of different reasons- one of the major ones being the effect of established tiger presence on various developmental projects either planned or executed in the mountainous regions as in the case of reconstruction and development works in Kedarnath where the focus is on maximising number of human visitors and expanding human presence to boost tourism.
On the one hand the authorities cannot state that revival of tiger presence in the mountains is undesirable but at the same time projects being planned and implemented to increase number of tourists will actually be detrimental not only to the tiger but also to the various ecological components like adequate prey base, comparatively less damaged habitat and limited human populace,”said the official.