Tiger conservation: State proves a safe home for these big cats despite several challenges

International Tigers Day just passed, highlighting the success of tiger conservation efforts in Tamil Nadu's Nilgiris landscape.

International Tigers Day has just passed by. In Tamil Nadu, the tigers have found a new home, as the Nilgiris landscape, which has the largest tiger population in the world; and the contiguous forests between Kerala and Tamil Nadu in Periyar – Megamalai cluster and Anamalai – Parambikulam complex, help the big cats thrive here.

As many as 306 tigers were recorded in Tamil Nadu in the nation-wide census by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) for 2022. This figure was an increase from the 264 big cats found in the 2018 survey. In fact, there has been a four-fold increase in the tiger numbers here over the past two decades.

The conservation of tigers in India can be divided into two phases. The first phase, starting in the 1970s, involved the enactment of the Wildlife Protection Act and the establishment of protected areas. The second phase began in 2005-2006, with the government adopting a landscape-level approach and implementing strict monitoring for tiger conservation.

The cycles of tiger monitoring have resulted in major changes in policy and tiger population management. These include the designation and notification of inviolate critical core and buffer areas of tiger reserves, identification and declaration of new reserves, recognition of tiger landscapes and the importance of corridors.

The protected areas within the Western Ghats are some of the most biodiverse in the country. In 2018, the tiger population was estimated at 981. In 2022, 824 unique tigers were recorded, indicating a decline in some regions and stability in well-protected tiger reserves.

There are two major conservation issues in the Nilgiris landscape as well as rest of Tamil Nadu. The rise of development has led to an increasing overlap between wildlife and humans, leading to conflicts; and the spread of invasive species that has to be contained to safeguard the indigenous flora and the ecosystem as a whole.

While the Nilgiri cluster is home to the world’s largest tiger population, recent data shows a decrease in tiger occupancy throughout the Western Ghats. While tiger populations within the protected areas have either remained stable or increased, tiger occupancy outside of these regions has significantly decreased.