Ground-level work for tiger census begins

Rishikesh, Sep 24 (PTI) The Wildlife Institute of India (WII) has begun ground-level work to accurately and scientifically estimate the 2026 tiger population across the country and other important aspects related to the census.

The institute’s director Govind S Bhardwaj said that the sixth tiger census in the country is being conducted by the institute under the direction of the Union Forest Ministry and the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA).

He said that a training programme has begun for frontline forest personnel of forest divisions located in tiger landscapes. He added that a two-day training programme was held on September 15-16 this month at the Pench Tiger Reserve in the Seoni district of Madhya Pradesh, in which trainees from tiger-bearing states of central and western India participated.

Bhardwaj stated that the second phase of the training will be held on September 24-25 for the southern states in Muddumalai Tiger Reserve and Bandipur Tiger Reserve, while the third phase will be held from October 28-30 in the Sundarbans Tiger Reserve, a World Heritage Site in West Bengal.

The fourth phase will be held from November 18-20 for the northern states in Uttarakhand's Rajaji Tiger Reserve and for the northeastern tiger states in Assam's Nameri Tiger Reserve.

The director explained that the training will involve gathering information on the status of co-predators, prey species, scavengers, the ecosystem, and habitat quality in the forest areas identified for tiger censuses.

He explained that this time, under the direction of the country's Tiger Task Force, the double sampling method will be used in the identified forest areas. Furthermore, the entire process, including camera trapping, will be completed with transparency and accuracy.

He added that his current focus is on ensuring the success of the training programme. PTI DPT MNK MNK