In a bid to commemorate Project Tiger's completion of 50 years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi released the latest tiger census data in Mysuru on Sunday, 9 April.
He announced that as of 2022, India has 3,167 tigers. Census data was last released in 2018, when India had 2,967 tigers.
Project Tiger, which was launched in 1973 by the Indira Gandhi government, completed its golden jubilee on 1 April.
“The success of 'Project Tiger' is a matter of pride not only for India, but for whole world," PM Modi said.
He also launched the International Big Cats Alliance (IBCA), at an event called ‘Commemoration of 50 years of Project Tiger’. The ICBA will focus on protection and conservation of seven major big cats of the world — Tiger, Lion, Leopard, Snow Leopard, Puma, Jaguar and Cheetah — with membership of the range countries where these species are found.
Besides this, the PM released:
- ‘Amrit kaal ka vision for tiger conservation’, a summary report of 5th cycle of Management Effective Evaluation of Tiger Reserves
- declare tiger numbers and release summary report of All India Tiger Estimation (5th cycle).
- A commemorative coin on the completion of 50 years of ‘Project Tiger’
Earlier in the day, the prime minister visited the Bandipur Tiger Reserve in Chamarajanagar district and interacted with frontline field staff and self-help groups involved in conservation activities.
He is also slated to visit the Theppakadu Elephant camp in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve in neighbouring Tamil Nadu bordering Chamarajanagar district and interact with mahouts and ‘kavadis’ of the elephant camp.
(With inputs from PTI)
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