Forest officials call for use of drones to curb poaching, estimate tiger count
Tiger census has evolved from pug mark counts to the present method of using camera traps.
3 min read
Rising number of tigers across the country, and especially in Maharashtra (over 200), has now led forest officials to focus on ending trafficking of wildlife parts.
After decades of decline, the tiger count is rising and now forest officials are keen on the use of drones as a form of aerial surveillance to curb poaching and illegal trade of wildlife parts.
According to the worldwide fund and global tiger forum, India’s count of the tigers stands at 2,226, followed by Russia which has 433 tigers, Indonesia who has 371 , Malaysia 250, Nepal 198, Thailand 189, Bangladesh 106 and Bhutan 103.
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The data that was released at the ongoing third Asian ministerial conference on tiger conservation at New Delhi has also had state forest officials pitching in for new proposals on saving the tigers.
“There has been a lot of talk on illegal trade and while there was no case of poaching in the last two years in the Melghat region, we are hoping for the use of drones and other electronic equipment to help us track the illegal trade,” Dr Dinesh Tyagi, Chief Conservator of Forests and Field Director of Project Tiger, Melghat told The Indian Express.
Tiger census has evolved from pug mark counts to the present method of using camera traps.
However, the use of latest technologies – such as aerial count with help of unmanned aerial vehicles or drones or satellite – will not just help us improve the estimation outcome, but also keep a check on poaching.
While Maharashtra has over 200 tigers, there are 42 tigers at Melghat tiger reserve. We have a count of 19 cubs as well, he added.
Another method for conservation of tigers is relocating villages. There are 33 villages in Melghat and we have been able to relocate 14, he pointed out.
Sunil Limaye, Chief Conservator of Forests, Pune division said the national tiger conservation authority had rated Tadoba, Melghat and Pench tiger projects from good to very good for protection, conservation and effective management of wildlife, while Sahyadri is from fair to good.
There are more than 200 tigers in Maharashtra and a majority are at Tadoba, Pench, Melghat, Navegaon, Nagzhira and Sahyadri tiger reserves.
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