NEW DELHI: India may just succeed in controlling the population with greater success. Not of humans though. But of tigers, as it is planning to use contraceptives to limit the tiger population. Relocating them to Thailand could also be on the agenda. On Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will reveal to the nation the exact number of tigers in India at a mega event in Mysuru to mark the completion of 50 years of Project Tiger.
The tiger population has started rising since 2006 and experts say it has reached the threshold level. The numbers are more than what has been officially stated as nearly 40% of tigers live outside of its reserve. Now, the government is considering using contraceptives and relocating some tigers to Thailand to control the population as there are increasing incidents of tiger-human conflicts (THC).
“We cannot allow trophy hunting of the animal like in Africa. However, we must think of relocating to sub-optimal reserve and contraceptive use,” says Dr YV Jhala, former Dean of Wildlife Institute of India and foremost Tiger’s expert. In 2006 the number of tigers reached 1,411, the lowest ever.
In 2002, all tigers vanished from Sariska Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan and later from Panna Tiger Reserve. It prompted the government to form a panel in 2005, which recommended a more holistic way of managing top predators, a regular census of co-predators, and confidence-building measures with the community around reserves. Since 2006, India has adopted more scientific methods and technology, such as the use of camera traps, according to experts.