BENGALURU: The population of tigers continues to rise in the country and the evaluation of tiger numbers in 2022 revealed that the tiger numbers have gone up by 200 across the country. The Status of Tigers-2022 was released by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a function held in Mysuru on Sunday.
The tiger estimation done in 2018 reported the presence of 2,967 tigers and Madhya Pradesh topped the country in tiger population with 526 tigers and Karnataka stood second with a tiger population of 524. The evaluation of tigers is done once in four years across the country starting from 2006.
Tigers in 2006 were 1,411 and the numbers saw an increase in 2010 estimation which accounted for about 1,706 tigers. In the 2014 estimation , tiger population in the country stood at 2,226 and it went up to 2,967 tigers in 2018.
Terming that the launching of ‘Project Tiger’ a ‘success,’ which helped their numbers rise in the country in the last 50 years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday attributed attributed the rise in tiger numbers in India to the prevalence of ‘culture’ among the people to protect its biodiversity and environment.
Addressing the gathering at the release of Status of Tigers-2022 report in Mysuru, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the rise in tiger numbers is a matter for pride for the whole world and added that India has not saved the tigers but created a better eco-system for the tigers to flourish.
He observed that in our culture, tigers have been associated for thousands of years and in the rock arts of Madhya Pradesh, tigers depicted are about 10,000 years old and said that many communities such as Bariyan in Madhya Pradesh and Worli in Maharashtra,among others, worship tigers.
Some communities of the country treat tigers as 'brothers' while in the Hindu mythology, the tiger is the vahaan (vehicle) of Goddess Durga and Lord Ayyappa, added PM Modi.
Modi commented on how wildlife lovers might be pondering as to why the tiger numbers in the country have been on the rise while tigers numbers have remained ‘stable’ or were ‘dropping’ in other countries.
Modi stated that tiger numbers have gone up in the country owing to ‘united’ efforts of the people and officials concerned.
