Tag Archives: NTCA

Environment & Forest, India, Wildlife

NTCA for strict enforcement of Carrying Capacity in Tiger Reserves

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Newsroom24x7 Network

Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve. Photo by Lalit Shastri

New Delhi: National Tiger Conservation Authority has issued specific instructions to all State Chief Wildlife Wardens to ensure strict compliance of the “Carrying Capacity” as per the NTCA guidelines when it comes to tourism in Tiger Reserves.

Dr Anup K Nayak, Additional Director General Forest (Project Tiger) and Member Secretary NTCA has written to all State Chief Wildlife Wardens instructing them to ensure the gap between two vehicles is maintained at a minimum distance of 500 meters.

Nayak has underscored that tourist vehicles inside the Tiger Reserves do not maintain the minimum 500 meter distance with other vehicles, often resulting in crowding of vehicles at one spot where animals are sighted and this is detrimental to wildlife. This defeats the very purpose for which carrying capacity is fixed.

NTCA, through its order of 12 February, has asked the State Wildlife chiefs to implement the carrying capacity guideline in letter and spirit.

Tourism carrying capacity in Tiger Reserves is calculated as maximum number of vehicles permitted per day under the NTCA (Normative Standards of Tourism Activities and Project Tiger) guidelines 2012.

India

Telangana gets specially trained forces for its two Tiger reserves

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Newsroom24x7 Desk

Ustad-the tigerHyderabad : The NTCA (National Tiger Conservation Authority) has sanctioned specially-skilled forces for two tiger reserves in the state of Telangana. And the work force will begin functioning before the calendar changes its sheet to 2017.

Special Tiger Protection Forces (STPF) has got approval from centre and it will provide specially trained personnel, around 120 in number count, who will work towards rendering a safe environment for tiger protection and saving the wildlife along with it.

Telangana Chief Wildlife Warden P.K. Sharma stated that sanction will focus on two tiger reserves, namely, Amarabad and Kawal. Kawal Tiger Reserve is in Adilabad district while Amarabad Tiger Reserve is spread across Mahabubnagar and Nalgonda districts of Telangana.

STPF personnel will be trained akin to para-military force personnel or by state police training wing. The trained personnel will comprise of a range of forest officers and a police officer. Getting to serve upto an age of 40, these personnel will thereafter be absorbed back into regular vacancies in concerned departments. While in action at tiger reserves, the personnel will be fully equipped with arms and will be given special training on handling forest-related nuisances like smugglers, poachers and encroachers.

The project will be funded by Central government and recruitment schedule will remain under the jurisdiction of Telangana state government.

Environment & Forest, Wildlife

Ustad the tiger just cannot be locked up in unethical conditions

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Sybelle Foxcroft

Ustad-the tigerAn Indian Bengal Tiger named Ustad (T24), who lived in Ranthambhore National Park and is being held responsible for killing a forest guard on 8 May, another in 2012, and said to have killed 2 villagers who ventured into his territory, has been moved 400 km away to a sanctuary where it was reported he has injured himself trying to escape.

Numerous people are divided in whether or not Ustad has been treated unfairly or if he truly is a dangerous tiger….

The fact is all Tigers are dangerous, some are more territorial and dominant than others. To underestimate a Tiger is the biggest mistake that can be made.

T24 (Ustad). Magnificent specimen. photographed by Bobbie Jamwal last year.
T24 (Ustad). Magnificent specimen. photographed by Bobbie Jamwal last year.

Ustad is known to be an incredibly beautiful, strong and dominant male Tiger.

India is the land of the Bengal Tiger, but if a Tiger behaves as a Tiger does in an ever decreasing landscape with huge over population problems and lack of prey, and management, then dangers will exist between humans and Tigers. Our hearts and compassion go out to the families and friends of those who have lost their loved ones.

On the 19 May 2015, Cee4life wrote to the NTCA and other conservationists regarding the fate of the ever-increasing so-called “man eaters” or “problem tigers”. We will post that letter into the public soon. If these situations continue to occur, there must be another solution for these “problem tigers”. You cannot just lock them up in unethical conditions with an “out of mind out of sight” mentality..

Very unfortunate incident (8 May), knew the deceased Rampal Saini. Have offered our help through the DFO in any way for the Family… Time to come forward and help the families of these brave men who save these beautiful animals and give their lives for them…
RIP Rampal Saini..- Bobbie Jamwal

 

Environment & Forest, Wildlife

Tiger Population in India goes up to 2226, 30.5% increase since the last estimate

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Prakash Javadekar releases Status of Tigers in India Report 2014

Newsroom24x7 Desk

tigerNew Delhi, Jan. 20: Minister of Environment, Forests& Climate Change  Prakash Javadekar today said that Government initiatives to streamline Tiger Conservation along with effective Forest Management and Community Participation has led to increase in the number of tigers. All around involvement of all stakeholders has helped raise the number of tigers from 1706 in 2010 to 2226 in the latest estimates.

The Minister stated this while inaugurating the two day meeting of the Chief Wildlife Wardens of Tiger States and Field Directors of Tiger Reserves, here today

The increase in Tiger Population, Mr. Javadekar said, is a testimony of the success of various measures adopted by the Government. These measures related to Special Tiger Protection Force, Special Programme for Orphan Tiger cubs, efforts to control poaching and initiatives to minimize Human-Animal conflict and encroachment. India was willing to donate Tiger cubs to international community and play a key role in the global Tiger Conservation efforts, he added.

Mr.Javadekar further stated that the successful Tiger Conservation practices in the country could be adopted and practiced by the international community as a step towards sustainable forest management.Shri Javadekar lauded the efforts of the Tiger ReservesManagement and Project Tiger Team for the achievement.

The Third Round of country-level Tiger Assessment employing refined technology of double sampling using camera traps hadrecorded an increase in tiger population. The midvalue of the snapshot assessment using the same methodology in 2006 was 1411. In 2010 the Tiger population was 1706 and in 2014 it stood at 2226 with an increase 30.5 % since the last estimate. A total of 3,78,118 sq.kms of Forest Area in 18 Tiger States was surveyed, with total of 1540 unique Tiger Photo captures. As per the survey, Tiger population has increased in Karnataka, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala. The third round of independent Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Tiger Reserves has shown an overall improvement in the score of 43 Tiger Reserves from 65% in 2010-11 to 69 in 2014.

The Economic Valuation of 6 Tiger Reserves carried out for the first time provided qualitative and quantitative estimates of benefits accruing from tiger reserves. These included ecological, economic, social and cultural services. The assessment of Forest Cover Change in Tiger Landscape of Shivalik-Gangetic Plain has indicated an improvement of forest cover in core areas of Tiger Reserves.

The Minister released Reports on the status of Tiger population in India. These include– Report on All India Tiger Estimation 2014, Report on Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Tiger Reserves -2014, Compendium on Status of Tiger Reserves, Report on Economic Valuation of Tiger Reserves, Report on Assessment of Changes Forest Cover in Tiger Reserves (Shivalik- Gangetic Plain Landscape), and Report on Corridors: Connecting Tiger Population for Long term Conservation. Shri Javadekar also distributed NTCA awards for Excellence in various categories.

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