The number of tigers in Uttarakhand has increased to 442 as revealed in the report on Status of Tigers in India-2018 released by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the national capital on Monday.
The State has show a consistent rise in the tiger population since the first estimation in 2006 when Uttarakhand had 178 tigers.
In the 2010 tiger population estimation report, Uttarakhand had 227 tigers, with their population increasing to 340 in 2014 and further rising to 442 in 2018.
Of the three states in the Shivalik-Gangetic plains landscape- Uttarakhand has the smallest geographical area and the highest tiger numbers. The other two states, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have 173 and 31 tigers respectively according to the latest estimation report.
Expressing happiness at the rising tiger numbers, chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat said that Uttarakhand is committed to conservation of biodiversity, environment and wildlife. The Saint Petersburg declaration of 2010 was about doubling the world tiger population by 2022 but India has achieved this aim four years before the deadline. Uttarakhand has made an important contribution in this achievement. Rawat pointed out that forest and wildlife conservation is part of Uttarakhand’s culture.
In the recent conclave of Himalayan states held in Mussoorie, the Himalayan states had pledged to conserve the biodiversity, environment and wildlife while striving for sustainable development, he added. Meanwhile, the State’s Forest and Wildlife minister Harak Singh Rawat attended a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the national capital on Monday.
He said that according to the 2018 census data, Uttarakhand is first when it comes to tiger conservation. Though Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka have more tigers, comparing the ratio of geographical area and tiger population, Uttarakhand tops the states in tiger conservation. Among tiger divisions too, Uttarakhand has topped with 250 tigers being counted in the Corbett tiger division while in the non-tiger divisions too, the state has the maximum numbers of this big cat.
Further, tiger presence has been reported in all the 13 districts of Uttarakhand whereas there is no other Indian state in which tiger presence has been reported in all the districts.
In the meeting, Rawat also presented the logic behind construction of the Kandi motor road which will connect Garhwal and Kumaon regions. He requested the Prime Minister to intervene in this matter to facilitate construction of this motor road in public interest.
Meanwhile, the State’s principal chief conservator of forests, Jai Raj credited the people of Uttarakhand for the increase in the population of tigers.