Project Tiger was launched as a major tiger conservation programme on April 1, 1973 at Corbett National Park in present Uttarakhand. It has consistently helped in restoring the tiger population and strengthening the conservation efforts. Its initial coverage included nine tiger reserves spread over 18,278 sq km which has now expanded manifold. Also listen:Where did tigers vanish from Hazaribagh,land of tthousand tigers? ​Also listen: How Sunderbans’ elusive tigers became tourist-friendly Today, the country has 53 tiger reserves covering more than 75,000 sq km, that is about 2.4 per cent of the country’s geographical area of tiger habitat. These tiger reserves are repositories for biodiversity conservation in the country ensuring regional water security and carbon sequestration. These reserves are also contributing in accomplishing India’s climate change mitigation targets. With a current population of about 3,000 tigers as per 2018 Census, the population is increasing at an annual rate of 6 per cent. As India completes 50 years of Project Tiger, Union minister for environment, forest and climate change Bhupender Yadav talks to Times Special about the project’s contribution in the tiger’s population growth, and the way forward. Excerpts … How has India progressed in the past 50 years in terms of tiger conservation? We are trying to bring all potential tiger habitats under the coverage of Project Tiger by declaring them as tiger reserves. A few more tiger reserves will be declared soon. There is no parallel of a species-focused project of such a grand scale in the world. Project Tiger has been successful in bringing tigers back from the brink of extinction. Tiger reserves are the epitome of biodiversity conservation as they get the highest degree of protection under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. More than 350 sweet water streams/rivers either originate from them or have the majority of their catchment in tiger habitats. Besides ecosystem services, the tiger reserves provide thousands of livelihood opportunities to people in the form of eco-tourism and ancillary activities. The economy of many urban and semi-urban areas like Sawai Madhopur, Ramnagar, Tala, Thekkady etc are dependent on tiger tourism. Tiger reserves have the potential of becoming engines of economic growth. On an average, tiger reserves generate employment of more than 50 lakh man-days annually for the local people. They also provide alternative livelihood options through eco-development committees and self-help groups. What’s the ideal number of tigers to have so that it does not lead to other problems such as human-tiger conflict? Thanks to the efforts being put in by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and state governments, duly supported by civil society institutions, the tiger population is growing in the country unlike most of the other tiger range countries. With more than 70 percent global tiger population, India is the leader in the field of tiger conservation. Also listen: 10 things you didn’t know about tigers Also listen: Project Tiger: Amazing story of Khairi & her human family​ But the success of Project Tiger should not be viewed through numbers alone. We believe in the scientific management of tiger reserves and aim to have tiger population as per the carrying capacity of the habitat. The ministry is bringing all potential tiger habitats under the coverage of NTCA so that the viable tiger population can be conserved on a sustainable basis as per the carrying capacity. How can human-tiger conflicts be eliminated? Are states and the Centre on the same page? Tiger is a carnivore and human-tiger conflict cannot be ruled out. The conflicts have to be managed. The NTCA has issued guidelines and SOPs to deal with such conflicts. With funding support from the NTCA, regular capacity building of the frontline staff in States besides creation of rapid response teams, equipping them with modern equipment are being regularly done. At the same time, reducing the local people’s dependence on natural resources plays an important role in it. Thanks to the Ujjwala Yojana envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we are making good progress in this direction. Further, each state has its compensation mechanism/ex-gratia payment mechanism in place to deal with loss/injury of human and cattle life. Will the growing number of tigers impact the country’s cheetah translocation plan, considering the common and inter-connected habitats? Cheetah populations in South Africa, Namibia and other range countries have been doing good with other carnivores like lions and leopards. Historical facts also reveal that cheetahs and tigers have existed in the same habitat in India. Cheetah reintroduction has been planned carefully considering all such factors. When will the next batch of cheetahs arrive in India? Will the new ones be translocated in other national parks? As of now, eight cheetahs from Namibia and 12 from South Africa have been translocated successfully and released in the Kuno National Park. Unfortunately, two days back (March 27) we lost one cheetah. As per the plan, 10 to 12 cheetahs are to be brought annually depending upon adaptation and survival of the already translocated cheetahs. So far the cheetahs have adapted well and are showing all normal skills and parameters. Further, additional numbers will depend upon careful evaluation and monitoring of the ongoing efforts. The Cheetah Action Plan has evaluated and identified other sites as well namely Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary and Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh; and Bhainsrorgarh Wildlife Sanctuary complex and Shahgarh Bulge in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan etc. The basic aim is to establish a viable and sustainable meta population of cheetah at the Kuno National Park and replicate this model to other areas in due course. It’s a long-term programme. As the country grows economically there’s growing pressure on forests, which is the habitat of tigers and other big cats. Can the government strike a balance between environmental and economic interests? To prevent fragmentation of tiger habitats and ensure integrity at the landscape level, and connectivity through corridors, ecological incompatible land uses are not permitted and developmental activities are allowed only with adequate mitigation measures by the Standing Committee of the National Board of Wildlife. A detailed guideline on mitigation measures for linear infrastructure has been issued by the ministry with the help of the Wildlife Institute of India. Audio Production: Prateek KapoorProject Tiger was launched as a major tiger conservation programme on April 1, 1973 at Corbett National Park in present Uttarakhand. It has consistently helped in restoring the tiger population and strengthening the conservation efforts. Its initial coverage included nine tiger reserves spread over 18,278 sq km which has now expanded manifold. Also listen:Where did tigers vanish from Hazaribagh,land of tthousand tigers? ​Also listen: How Sunderbans’ elusive tigers became tourist-friendly Today, the country has 53 tiger reserves covering more than 75,000 sq km, that is about 2.4 per cent of the country’s geographical area of tiger habitat. These tiger reserves are repositories for biodiversity conservation in the country ensuring regional water security and carbon sequestration. These reserves are also contributing in accomplishing India’s climate change mitigation targets. With a current population of about 3,000 tigers as per 2018 Census, the population is increasing at an annual rate of 6 per cent. As India completes 50 years of Project Tiger, Union minister for environment, forest and climate change Bhupender Yadav talks to Times Special about the project’s contribution in the tiger’s population growth, and the way forward. Excerpts … How has India progressed in the past 50 years in terms of tiger conservation? We are trying to bring all potential tiger habitats under the coverage of Project Tiger by declaring them as tiger reserves. A few more tiger reserves will be declared soon. There is no parallel of a species-focused project of such a grand scale in the world. Project Tiger has been successful in bringing tigers back from the brink of extinction. Tiger reserves are the epitome of biodiversity conservation as they get the highest degree of protection under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. More than 350 sweet water streams/rivers either originate from them or have the majority of their catchment in tiger habitats. Besides ecosystem services, the tiger reserves provide thousands of livelihood opportunities to people in the form of eco-tourism and ancillary activities. The economy of many urban and semi-urban areas like Sawai Madhopur, Ramnagar, Tala, Thekkady etc are dependent on tiger tourism. Tiger reserves have the potential of becoming engines of economic growth. On an average, tiger reserves generate employment of more than 50 lakh man-days annually for the local people. They also provide alternative livelihood options through eco-development committees and self-help groups. What’s the ideal number of tigers to have so that it does not lead to other problems such as human-tiger conflict? Thanks to the efforts being put in by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and state governments, duly supported by civil society institutions, the tiger population is growing in the country unlike most of the other tiger range countries. With more than 70 percent global tiger population, India is the leader in the field of tiger conservation. Also listen: 10 things you didn’t know about tigers Also listen: Project Tiger: Amazing story of Khairi & her human family​ But the success of Project Tiger should not be viewed through numbers alone. We believe in the scientific management of tiger reserves and aim to have tiger population as per the carrying capacity of the habitat. The ministry is bringing all potential tiger habitats under the coverage of NTCA so that the viable tiger population can be conserved on a sustainable basis as per the carrying capacity. How can human-tiger conflicts be eliminated? Are states and the Centre on the same page? Tiger is a carnivore and human-tiger conflict cannot be ruled out. The conflicts have to be managed. The NTCA has issued guidelines and SOPs to deal with such conflicts. With funding support from the NTCA, regular capacity building of the frontline staff in States besides creation of rapid response teams, equipping them with modern equipment are being regularly done. At the same time, reducing the local people’s dependence on natural resources plays an important role in it. Thanks to the Ujjwala Yojana envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we are making good progress in this direction. Further, each state has its compensation mechanism/ex-gratia payment mechanism in place to deal with loss/injury of human and cattle life. Will the growing number of tigers impact the country’s cheetah translocation plan, considering the common and inter-connected habitats? Cheetah populations in South Africa, Namibia and other range countries have been doing good with other carnivores like lions and leopards. Historical facts also reveal that cheetahs and tigers have existed in the same habitat in India. Cheetah reintroduction has been planned carefully considering all such factors. When will the next batch of cheetahs arrive in India? Will the new ones be translocated in other national parks? As of now, eight cheetahs from Namibia and 12 from South Africa have been translocated successfully and released in the Kuno National Park. Unfortunately, two days back (March 27) we lost one cheetah. As per the plan, 10 to 12 cheetahs are to be brought annually depending upon adaptation and survival of the already translocated cheetahs. So far the cheetahs have adapted well and are showing all normal skills and parameters. Further, additional numbers will depend upon careful evaluation and monitoring of the ongoing efforts. The Cheetah Action Plan has evaluated and identified other sites as well namely Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary and Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh; and Bhainsrorgarh Wildlife Sanctuary complex and Shahgarh Bulge in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan etc. The basic aim is to establish a viable and sustainable meta population of cheetah at the Kuno National Park and replicate this model to other areas in due course. It’s a long-term programme. As the country grows economically there’s growing pressure on forests, which is the habitat of tigers and other big cats. Can the government strike a balance between environmental and economic interests? To prevent fragmentation of tiger habitats and ensure integrity at the landscape level, and connectivity through corridors, ecological incompatible land uses are not permitted and developmental activities are allowed only with adequate mitigation measures by the Standing Committee of the National Board of Wildlife. A detailed guideline on mitigation measures for linear infrastructure has been issued by the ministry with the help of the Wildlife Institute of India. Audio Production: Prateek Kapoor