India to Share Tiger Conservation Skills With World
With tiger numbers rising to 2500, India has agreed to help tiger range countries in reviving population of big cats and even relocating some if the environment is favourable for them to survive.
The meeting emphasized on recovery of tiger populations in areas with low tiger densities and restoration in areas from which they have been extirpated by using successful programmes of tiger reintroduction and rehabilitation of their habitats and prey.
Speaking at the 3rd Asian Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation, Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said that leveraging funding and technical support from international organisations through multilateral and bilateral channels is also important.
Calling for the need to align development and tiger conservation through participation of locals and other stakeholders, the minister said: “We believe in partnership with local communities because they are the real protectors.”
The meeting was attended by representative from 13 tiger range countries and the meet adopted the New Delhi Resolution on Tiger Conservation Resolution which includes recovery of tiger in low density protected areas by three Rs – Restoration, Reintroduction and Rehabilitation.
“Align development and tiger conservation in a mutually complementary manner by re-orienting development strategies to mainstream the concerns of tiger conservation, such as by integrating tiger and wildlife safeguards in infrastructure at the landscape level, developing partnerships with business groups, and strong engagement with local stakeholders,” said the resolution.
Acceleration of the implementation of Global Tiger Recovery Programme, which includes habitat improvement and anti-poaching surveillance through modern technology, align development and tiger conservation by ensuring intensive participation of locals and other stakeholders, promotion of tiger habitats to provide ecosystem service are other areas of the resolution.
The tiger range countries agreed upon to strengthen cooperation at the highest levels of government to combat wildlife crime, address the demand for tiger products, and increase formal and informal trans-boundary coordination.