Following is the text of the speech of the Hon'ble Minister for Environment and Forests Smt. Jayanthi Natarajan in an International Conference held today on tiger conservation in New Delhi.
“India has been participating in the Global Tiger Initiative platform since its launch. The International Tiger Forum held in Russia during November, 2010 culminated in the St. Petersburg Declaration. A Global Tiger Recovery Programme (GTRP) was also adopted by the tiger range countries, with the national priorities being spelt out in their respective National Tiger Recovery Programmes (NTRP).
It is almost one and half years since then and there is a need for stocktaking to know the progress relating to the implementation of NTRPs and the GTRP. I am glad that the platform provided by the GTI is facilitating representatives from Governments, donors, experts and conservationists to join hands for the important common cause of tiger conservation.
The status of wild tiger continues to remain endangered world over. As we all know, threats to wild tiger and its habitat are due to several factors like poaching, illegal trade catering to demand for body parts and derivatives of tiger, loss of habitat due to extractive industries, infrastructure and revenge killings. This list is not exhaustive. There are country-specific, area-specific issues which also affect tigers. Hence, the situation calls for adaptive as well as active management.
India's commitment for saving the tiger is well known. Wild tigers thrive in 17 of our States. We have the maximum number of tigers and their source areas. Project Tiger was launched in 1973 with 9 tiger reserves. Today, the coverage has increased to 41 reserves spread over all the 17 States. Almost 1% of our country's geographical area is conserved for tiger as their core/critical habitat. Project Tiger has all long been a learning exercise. Our experience has highlighted the need for enlisting local public support, which is crucial for tiger conservation to succeed.
The ‘exclusive' tiger agenda of the core, complemented by the ‘inclusive' multiple use strategy in the surrounding buffer areas have strengthened wild tiger conservation.
Thus, the ‘people agenda' ranks prominently in our ‘tiger agenda'. While we do not imagine any coexistence in the inviolate core areas, a viable inclusive agenda involving local people is fostered in the surrounding buffer. As many as 25 lakh mandays are generated annually in various States under Project Tiger through involvement of local workforce. Besides, the Tiger Conservation Plan makes it a statutory obligation for addressing both the core and buffer areas. Read the full report here.
Source: Press Information Bureau, GOI, New Delhi.
