Delighted to know India has nearly 3,000 tigers: Karan Singh

Veteran Congress leader Karan Singh, who started the Project Tiger, on Tuesday hailed the tiger census report released by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, saying he was delighted that the population of the big cat had reached almost 3,000.

In a statement, Singh, who was a cabinet minister between 1967 and 1973, said as the chairman of the Indian Board for Wildlife, he had persuaded then prime minister Indira Gandhi to change the national animal from lion to tiger in 1969.

"In my capacity as the chairman of the Indian Board for Wildlife, I was responsible in 1969 for persuading then prime minister Indira Gandhi to change the national animal from lion to tiger," the Congress leader said.

Singh, who inaugurated the Project Tiger in 1973, also said, "Thereafter, I conceived the Project Tiger under the chairmanship of the prime minister and was the first chairman of its steering committee for several years. In 1973, I formally inaugurated the Project Tiger at the Corbett National Park.

"With this background, I am delighted to know that the number of tigers has now reached almost 3,000," he said in a statement.

The Congress leader said the increase in the number of tigers in the country was a tribute to the forest guards working for decades to conserve the big cat and all leaders must be congratulated for this achievement.

"This is a tribute to the thousands of forest guards working in the tiger projects and hundreds of project directors over the decades, who have laboured to protect this magnificent animal. For this achievement, all concerned need to be congratulated -- from Prime Minister Indira Gandhi to Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he said.

According to the four-yearly All India Tiger Estimate report released by the prime minister, India is home to 2,967 tigers, which accounts for 75 per cent of the population of the big cat across the globe.