WWF for change in tiger policy, dialogue with China

New Delhi, Aug 6 (UNI) Pointing out the recent Wildlife Institute of India finding that major decline of tigers had been reported from various National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries, the World Wildlife Fund has said that efforts should be directed towards enhancing source population of the big cat, especially in areas outside the protected ones.

There is an urgent need to connect habitats to allow dispersal of tigers and other wildlife so as to help in re-population of areas where the population has declined, WWF CEO Ravi Singh said here.

He also called for a dialogue with China on a continuous basis on the issue of tiger trade, both bilaterally and multilaterally, to oppose any rethink on their domestic ban on tiger derivatives and their parts.

Interacting with the media, Mr Singh said state governments need to be supported to strengthen their enforcement machinery, with a special grant on the lines of the Police Modernisation Programmes for insurgency and other civil unrest affected areas.

A study by the WII has revealed that during the past 80 to 150 years, 26 per cent of the tiger area has been lost in 80 districts within the country. During this period, the human population has increased from 2384 million to 10274 million. (National Tiger Conservation Authority). These figures should be taken to be the wake up call if the tigers are to be conserved in the wild, sressed Mr Singh.

According to Mr Singh, non-government organisations should focus their approach on communities that reside in or around tiger habitats, and on communities that engage in poaching of wild animals.

''Communities understand the value that is associated with the area, due to the presence of tigers, and therefore they should be further involved in conservation measures,'' he said.

As Mr Singh sees it the predicament of continuous reduction of tiger habitat and fragmentation due to development projects, human habitation on forest land and encroachments, rail lines, roads, canals, was gaining momentum without sufficient care for the environment. This is leading to increased human-wildlife conflicts, the isolation of tiger population and their prey base.

The overall situation puts the tigers in a classic tipping point', from which emergence will be impossible unless our government and institutional efforts are enhanced substantially, to deliver at a much higher level, he said.

''If a change in the implementation of tiger conservation and a target driven policy is not adopted, India will be bidding farewell to a leader amongst Indian species and all the good that it carries, he said, adding there should be clear time frame for implementation of all these measures, and complete transparency about it.

UNI