Question : Increase in Number of Tigers

(a) whether the tigers often trespass into populated areas and attack domesticated animals and humans despite the availability of plenty of prey in the forest;
(b) if so, the details thereof;
(c) whether the Government has conducted any study regarding such behavior of tigers and if so, the details thereof;
(d) whether ecological balance of wildlife is being affected by such actions of the tigers and if so, the details thereof; and
(e) whether the Government proposes to formulate any scheme to rehabilitate the tigers to new natural habitats in other forest areas of the country and if so, the details thereof?

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE
(SHRI BABUL SUPRIYO)

(a) & (b) Tiger land tenure dynamics governs spillover of tigers from source areas in the event carrying capacity is exceeded, to adjoining habitats which are often interspersed with human settlements. This forest-human landscape mosaic causes negative-human tiger interactions which results in death of an average 38 people per year as observed over the last ten years, while 11 tigers have been eliminated by authorities in the last 8 years in such events.

(c) No such study has been conducted.

(d) No such ecological imbalance has been observed vis-à-vis fundamental tenets of tiger biology.

(e) The Government through the National Tiger Conservation Authority has issued a Standard Operating Procedure for active management towards rehabilitation of tigers from source areas at landscape level which is based on tiger conservation genetics and prescribes the landscapes between which tigers can be rehabilitated.

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