As many as 116 big cats have died so far till November 20, 2021—the highest in the past three years— much to the disappointment of wildlife activists and tiger lovers. The figures include 27 tigresses and 15 cubs.
A dozen of them died every month on an average for the first seven months of the year. The signs that this year was being cruel to the big cats were evident with 84 mortalities reported till July. Since then, at least 32 more royal predators succumbed to death in the following four months.
In 2018, 101 tiger deaths were reported in the country. The number fell to 96 in 2019 but 2020 saw a 10 per cent rise in the deaths, nearly 106. There was no let up in the deaths in 2021 also. Among the States, Madhya Pradesh known as ‘Tiger State’ reported highest casualties at 39 followed by Maharashtra (21 deaths), Karnataka (15) and Uttar Pradesh (9), as per the data compiled by the Tigernet, a data based e-platform under the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), a statutory body under the Union Environment Ministry.
The Wildlife Protection Society of India (WPSI), an NGO engaged in tiger conservation activities puts the toll on a much higher side. It claims that till November 2021, at least 145 big cats have died of which 48 due to poaching itself. This is a startling number when compared to the government data available from the Tigernet which puts the poaching figure at 9. India has 52 tiger reserves spread across 18 States having 2,967 big cats, as per the latest tiger census.
The government data shows that most of the deaths ie at least 76 per cent of the total mortalities have been reported from inside the tiger reserves itself. This shows that the big cats might have died either due to infighting or poaching as confirmed by the seizure of the skin and the body parts.
In 98 deaths, the officials are uncertain of the cause of the death. The number of tigers who died outsie their home, ie reserves were 54, indicating shortage of space for them in their habitat, which forced them to move out. This calls for better management, enhancement in protection strategy, sensitisation of villagers living on the fringes of the tiger reserves who usually electrocute or poison the striped predators in conflicts, said a senior official from Panna Tiger reserve in Madhya Pradesh.
Poachers seem to be making hay while many tiger reserves face staff and fund crunch and others negligence by the authorities. In fact, wildlife and RTI activist Ajay Dubey has already moved the Madhya Pradesh High Court alleging that due to negligence of the State Forest officials, even radio-collared big cats had died due to poaching and killings outside protected areas. In August 2019, the state had become India's 'tiger state' with 526 tigers counted in 2018 compared to 308 in 2014.
In 2021, even as MP recorded 39 tiger deaths, including 11 by poaching, Maharashtra tops the chart with poaching of 17 tigers followed by Karnataka, where 17 tigers have died including 4 by poaching, according to an official from the NTCA.
