Tiger conservation has once again become the talking point in
political and bureaucratic circles. Wildlife conservationist and
director of Wildlife Conservation Society (India Program) K
Ullas Karanth explains his concerns to Rakesh Prakash:
Q: India's tiger population has reportedly reduced from
nearly 4,000 to about 1,500 in recent years. What is the
magnitude of the problem?
The decline in tiger population has been more rapid in the last
five years. They face a major threat in Chhattisgarh, Andhra
Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and the north-eastern
states. But the process of arriving at their number seems to be
skewed. Though the Tiger Task Force recommended a switchover
from pugmark census to sampling-based approach, the new
methodology has not passed the test of science. That's why we
have new numbers popping up every week.
Q: Why is India finding it difficult to protect tigers?
The country lacks professionalism in wildlife conservation.
People in high places have no idea what tigers require to
survive. Conservation-related decisions are largely taken on the
basis of unscientific bureaucratic know-ledge. The Delhi-centric
approach of top-down tiger policymaking has to end and state
governments should be actively engaged in conservation. The
front-line defence in forest departments should be strengthened.
Q: How serious are forest departments in protecting tigers?
There is a steady drift from focused protection towards taking
up rural development activities. This started in the 1990s as
the business of eco-development grew. Top-heavy forest
departments, by allowing eco-development projects promoted by
big business houses, have shifted attention from protecting
forests to signing cheques for rural development. This has made
the forests porous.
Q: Have anti-poaching strategies failed in India?
Poaching is indeed a problem, but the bigger problem is that
people have started taking away the food of tigers. Nearly 90
per cent of tiger reserves are seeing depletion of prey-base. A
tiger must kill and eat 50-60 deer-sized animals a year just to
survive. If deer are hunted out, there will be no tigers. It is
necessary to protect tiger prey too.
Q: Manmohan Singh recently suggested creation of a
development agency geared at increasing local participation in
tiger reserve management.
The PM is only endorsing the Tiger Task Force's suggestion of
ensuring coexistence between tigers and people, nothing but a
poetic vision of tigers walking alongside humans. There should
be an application of science and professionalism in management
of tigers. Those in power should understand that nature
conservation is like buying an insurance policy for the future.