Tigers

Protecting big cats ensures human future, says Bhupender Yadav at COP30

India has urged global leaders to step up efforts to protect big cats, saying that securing the future of these species will ensure a safe, long-lasting life for mankind. Addressing the high-level Ministerial Segment on the International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) at the ongoing UNFCCC COP30 Summit here on Monday, Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav warned that a decline in big cat populations will destabilise the entire ecosystem. IBCA is an India-led global initiative to conserve seven big cat species: the tiger, lion, leopard, snow leopard, cheetah, jaguar, and puma. The alliance aims to promote collaboration among member countries to curb illegal wildlife trade, conserve habitats, and mobilise resources for conservation efforts. "Where big cats thrive, forests are healthier, grasslands regenerate, water systems function, and carbon is stored efficiently in living landscapes," Yadav said. He called for renewed global cooperation to protect big cat species and their habitats as par

Odisha's Debrigarh to become India's newest tiger reserve after revival

In the dense forests where freedom fighter Veer Surendra Sai once evaded British forces, Odisha's Debrigarh Wildlife Sanctuary is scripting one of India's most remarkable conservation success stories as it prepares to become the country's newest tiger reserve. The 804-square-kilometre sanctuary, which received National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) approval in July 2025, has transformed from a conflict-prone area with human habitation into a thriving ecosystem that generated Rs 5 crore in tourism revenue and attracted 85,000 visitors in 2025 alone. "We have very healthy prey density with populations of gaur, sambar, spotted deer, wild boar and recovering wild dog numbers. The leopard population is also good," Divisional Forest Officer Anshu Pragya Das told PTI. What makes this transformation extraordinary is the numbers: 40 per cent of all animal herds now consist of newborns, while the Indian gaur population jumped from 670 to over 700 in just six months, indicating a thrivin

International Tiger Day 2025: History, theme, significance, and more

Every year on July 29, the world observes International Tiger Day, a crucial reminder of our responsibility toward tiger conservation. Global Tiger Day, or International Tiger Day began in 2010

Over 50% tiger deaths since 2021 occurred outside tiger reserves: Govt

More than half of the tiger deaths in India between 2021 and 2025 so far have occurred outside protected reserves, with Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh accounting for the highest numbers, government data shows. According to the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), 667 tigers died during this period, of which 341, or 51 per cent, were outside tiger reserves. The year-wise data shows 129 tiger deaths in 2021; 122 in 2022; 182 in 2023; 126 in 2024 and 108 so far in 2025. Deaths outside reserves were 64 in 2021; 52 in 2022; 100 in 2023; 65 in 2024 and 60 in 2025 so far. Maharashtra reported the highest number of deaths outside reserves at 111, followed by Madhya Pradesh with 90. In 2021, Maharashtra recorded 23 such deaths, Madhya Pradesh 18, Kerala five and Telangana four. In 2022, Maharashtra saw 18 deaths, Madhya Pradesh 12, and Kerala and Uttarakhand four each. In 2023, 34 tigers died outside reserves in Maharashtra, 13 in Madhya Pradesh, 11 each in Kerala and Uttarakhand

Three tiger cubs die in Bannerghatta despite efforts from doctors

Three tiger cubs that were allegedly abandoned by their mother after littering have died in Bannerghatta Biological Park (BBP) recently, officials said on Saturday. Tigress Hima Das gave its third litter of three cubs on July 7, and after giving birth, she did not take care of them, and consequently, all three cubs were injured, they said. According to the BBP, the cubs were shifted to a Hospital for intensive care and hand-rearing. Despite all interventions by doctors, the cubs didn't survive. On July 8, a male cub died, and on July 9, another male and a female cubs died. "A post-mortem was conducted by the veterinary team. One male cub died due to cervical injury due to stamping, another male cub died due to injuries to brain tissue and meningeal hematoma caused as a result of the mother's biting on its head, while the female cub succumbed to stamping," the BBP said, in a statement. The whole ordeal was CCTV-monitored, and animal keepers and doctors have taken utmost care in ...

Karnataka govt suspends 2 officials over unnatural death of 5 tigers

Karnataka Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre has suspended two officials for negligence and dereliction of duty in connection with the 'unnatural death' of five tigers in the Male Mahadeshwara(MM) Hills, officials said. The minister has also recommended the suspension of Deputy Conservator of Forests (DCF) Y Chakrapani in connection with the issue, they said. A female tigress and her four cubs were found dead in the Hugyam range of the MM Hills on June 26. Khandre also recommended departmental inquiries into their conduct. Following the incident, authorities arrested three individuals, including the cow's owner, who allegedly poisoned the cow's carcass, suspected of causing the tigers' deaths. Khandre's decision came after reviewing the preliminary report submitted by a high-level inquiry committee headed by Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (APCCF) Kumar Pushkar, which was set up to probe the incident. The minister has directed the committee to submit its final repor

Sunderbans tigers count to rise in conducive habitat with no threat

The number of tigers in the Sunderbans is likely to rise in the next census as there is no threat of saturation and sufficient prey base in the 4,200 sq km area of the mangrove forest, a senior forest official said. The number of Royal Bengal Tigers in West Bengal's Sunderbans as per the 2022 census was 101. "The 2022 tiger census count of 101 is nowhere close to carrying capacity in near future... ," Chief Wildlife Warden Debal Roy told PTI. "On a terrain like the Sunderbans carrying capacity means the number of tigers per 100 sq km. If you keep in mind that Sunderbans has an area of 4,200 sq km and calculate, the carrying capacity of tigers will be far below than any saturation level," he said. Roy said the prey bass consisting of spotted deer is regularly replenished for the tiger population and the forest department is working on steps like anti-poaching, anti-trafficking and barring entry of fishermen, honey collectors, wood collectors and other villagers living in contiguous

The hidden cost of India's tiger reserves: Loss of tribal rights

Tribal communities bear the brunt of conservation policies 50 years after a key programme on tiger conservation was launched

Illegal construction in Corbett: SC raps ex-U'khand forest minister Rawat

The Supreme Court on Wednesday came down heavily on former Uttarakhand forest minister and Congress leader Harak Singh Rawat and ex-divisional forest officer Kishan Chand for allowing illegal construction and felling of trees in the Corbett tiger reserve. This is a case where bureaucrats and politicians have thrown public trust doctrine in the waste bin, said a bench headed by Justice B R Gavai. The apex court directed the CBI, which is already probing the case, to file its status report in the matter within three months. "They (Rawat and Chand) have in blatant disregard of the law and for commercial purposes indulged in mass felling of trees to construct buildings in the pretext of promotion of tourism," the bench said. The top court said it was amazed at the audacity of Rawat and Chand in giving statutory provisions a total go by. It also formed a committee to look into whether tiger safaris can be permitted in buffer or fringe areas of national parks in the country. The Enforc

Measures taken to curb human fatality in Chhattisgarh tiger reserve

There has been no loss of human life in wild animal attacks at the Udanti Sitanadi Tiger Reserve in Chhattisgarh in the last one year as a result of measures undertaken to reduce man-animal conflict, an official claimed on Sunday. During the same period, the anti-poaching team of the reserve arrested 120 poachers and encroachments on 650 hectares inside the reserve were removed, he said. More than 100 villages are located in the tiger reserve spread in Gariaband and Dhamtari districts and since February 23, 2023, no loss of human life has been reported in wild animal attacks, the reserve's deputy director Varun Jain told PTI. The tiger reserve witnessed human fatalities in wild animal attacks, particularly by elephants, in a couple of years before that, he said. The last casualty in the elephant attack was reported on February 22, 2023 in the tiger reserve, he said. In 2022-23, six people died in separate incidents of elephant and sloth bear attacks while in 2021-22, one human ...

Tiger population in U'khand rose by 314% in 16 years: Chief wildlife warden

The tiger population in Uttarakhand has increased at a rate of 314 per cent between 2006 and 2022, officials said on Saturday. Uttarakhand Chief Wildlife Warden Samir Sinha claimed the tiger population density in Uttarakhand is among the highest in the world. The tiger population which stood at 178 in 2006 rose to 560 in 2022, recording a rise of 314 per cent, Sinha said. He said the increase in the population of the wild animal in the state is due to steps taken by the forest department in recent years to improve their habitat conditions. However, a slight increase was recorded in 2023 in the number of people killed and injured in tiger attacks, the warden said. Two persons were killed in tiger attacks in 2021, 16 in 2022 and 17 in 2023, while eight persons were injured by big cats in 2021, 10 in 2022 and nine in 2023, Sinha said. The total number of people killed in encounters with animals such as leopards, elephants and snakes besides tigers was 71 in 2021, 82 in 2022 and 66

Tigress found dead in MP's Umaria, territorial fight likely cause of death

A 4-year-old tigress was found dead on Sunday in Umaria district in Madhya Pradesh, a forest department official said. Its body was found in the buffer zone in Manpur range of Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve, area ranger Mukesh Ahirwar told PTI. "Circumstantial evidence suggests it died in a territorial fight. We rushed to the spot with sniffer dogs and have sent the carcass for post mortem. Its viscera has been submitted for testing," he said. The carcass was disposed of as per National Tiger Conservation Authority guidelines, the official added.

Population of tigers in India up from 1,411 in 2006 to 3,682 in 2022: Govt

The population of tigers in the country has increased from 1,411 in 2006 to 3,682 in 2022, the government informed the Parliament on Monday. Union Minister of Culture G Kishan Reddy said this in a written response in the Lok Sabha. Reddy was asked whether certain bird, flower, animal etc. in the country have been designated as national bird, national flower and national animal and provided protection along with the special status keeping in view the sentiments of common people across the country. As informed by Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF & CC), the Government of India had notified tiger and peacock as 'National Animal' and 'National Bird' respectively, the minister said in his response. "As the said notifications of the Government of India were not forthcoming in the official records of MoEF & CC for quite some time, the Ministry renotified Tiger and Peacock as 'National Animal' and National Bird' respectively, on 30th May 2011," he added. Tiger ..

10 held for hunting, encroachment of forest land near Kuno National Park

Ten persons have been arrested for their alleged involvement in forest crimes, including hunting and tree-cutting, near the Kuno National Park (KNP), the home of cheetahs, in Madhya Pradesh's Sheopur district, officials said on Saturday. These persons were arrested from the Karahal forest range, some 40 km from KNP boundaries, officials said. The accused, including four from Rajasthan, were taken into custody in connection with tree-cutting, encroachment and hunting, the forest department said in a press release. Two axes, a gofan' (sling) and five nooses that are used in hunting were seized from their possession, it said. Karahal's Forest Range Officer Satyendra Singh Dhakad said that the accused have been booked under Indian Forest Act and Wildlife (Protection) Act. They were presented before a court before being sent to jail, he said. KNP has been under the spotlight ever since eight Namibian cheetahs five female and three male were released into enclosures there last Septemb

Tiger trade syndicate busted, ex-WPSI officer arrested: Govt agency

Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), an apex body constituted by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF & CC) to combat the organised wildlife crime and illegal wildlife trade, issued a red alert to all Tiger reserves and tiger bearing areas to intensify the patrolling and sanitise all above areas from hunting gangs on July 29, 2023.A tiger skin and bones were seized and five offenders were arrested at Guwahati by Assam Forest and police officials on 28 June, 2023, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change said.The case was transferred by the Assam forest department to WCCB for investigation as the case showed involvement of multiple states.According to Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the WCCB constituted an SIT to investigate the Guwahati tiger skin and bone seizure case. The preliminary interrogation of the offenders showed that the tiger body parts seized belong to the Gadchiroli area in Maharashtra. These initial ...

Tiger population jumps 64% to 135 at Dudhwa Reserve, says official

The number of tigers in the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve area has risen to 135 from a previous population of 82 - a jump of more than 64 per cent, an official said. Dudhwa Tiger Reserve Deputy Director Rengaraju Tamilselvan said the number of tigers, including the ones outside the reserve, has also grown from 107 to 153, clocking a growth of around 43 per cent. He said the record growth has sent the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve to the top among all tiger reserves in the country. The data for all tiger reserves in the country was revealed on International Tiger Day on Saturday. The DTR authorities also organised a marathon relay-patrol along the Dudhwa forest areas on Friday which culminated on International Tiger Day with more than a dozen teams from DTR covering a distance of 4,898 km on foot, bicycle, boat, and elephant. The patrol covered the entire length and breadth of Dudhwa National Park (DNP), Kishanpur wildlife sanctuary, and areas of buffer zone, including border areas along Pilibhit, .

India has 3682 tigers, home to 75% of global numbers: Tiger census data

The number of tigers in India has increased from 2,967 in 2018 to 3,682 in 2022, an annual rise of 6 per cent, according to the latest government data released on the International Tiger Day on Saturday. With this, India has become home to approximately 75 per cent of the world's tiger population, Union Minister of State for Forest, Environment and Climate Change Ashwini Kumar Choubey said in Ramnagar while releasing the data for 2022. When Prime Minister Narendra Modi released the "Status of Tigers 2022" to mark the completion of 50 years of "Project Tiger" in April, the government had said there are at least 3167 tigers in India. Tiger census is held every four years in the country. "There are a maximum of 3925 tigers in the country. The average number is 3,682," a senior official from the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) said. With a 50 per cent increase in the last four years, Madhya Pradesh has the maximum number (785) of tigers in the country, followed by Karnatak

Tiger count in MP rose to 785 in four years: Chouhan congratulates people

The number of tigers in Madhya Pradesh rose to 785 in 2022 from 526 in 2018, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Saturday as he greeted the state's people on International Tiger Day. As per the report 'Status of Tigers: Co-predators & Prey in India-2022', released by the National Tiger Conservation Authority and Wildlife Institute of India, Madhya Pradesh has the highest number of tigers in the country, followed by Karnataka (563) and Uttarakhand (560). Madhya Pradesh forests added 259 tigers in a span of four years, as per the survey. It is a matter of great pleasure that as a result of cooperation of the people of our state and untiring efforts of the Forest Department, the number of tigers in our state has increased to 785 from 526 in four years, Chouhan said in a tweet. Congratulating the people of the state for this success, he further said, Let us all together take a pledge to conserve nature for future generations on the occasion of International Tiger Day. The ..

International Tiger Day: Rise in numbers cause for celebration and concern

One tiger and scores of tourists in open jeeps asking each other in piercing whispers to be quiet as they train their binoculars and cameras on it, getting perilously close to the animal while they do so. The all too familiar scene captured in innumerable social media posts could be from Ranthambore or Corbett, Tadoba or Kanha - a snapshot as it were of the human-animal dilemma that has seen the number of tigers in India go up while their habitat shrinks and often brought humans just too close to the big cats. The rising tiger population, which has also spotlighted the development versus ecology debate, is cause for celebration and also concern, experts said ahead of International Tiger Day on Saturday. With 3,167 tigers according to the 2022 tiger census, about 75 per cent of the global numbers, the once elusive bright orange fur and distinct low rumbling roar is not so rare anymore. Scripting a remarkable story of conservation, Project Tiger started 50 years ago in 1973 when the .

International Tiger Day to be observed on July 29, check interesting facts

International Tiger Day is observed every year on July 29. There are only 3167 tigers left in India and the shocking fact is that this number is 75 per cent of the global tiger population