India is home to the largest population of tigers in the wild among all range countries; approximately 50% of the world’s population survives across 17 Indian states. Yet, the current estimated population of about 1500 tigers in India represents just about 4 % of that in the early 1900s. Genetic viability and long-term survival of the species is threatened due to low densities in many source populations.

Poaching of these predators as well as their prey, habitat destruction and fragmentation are among the major reasons for this drastic decline in tiger population. In addition to the population decline, these conservation challenges constantly fuel human-tiger conflict in various parts of India, resulting in loss of lives of people as well as tigers. Addressing these conflicts quickly is crucial, as they can otherwise have negative repercussions for overall tiger conservation in the respective areas.

Siraj Uddin Mazumder, Assistant Field Oficer, WTI installs a camera trap to monitor tigers in Dudhwa National Park

Human-carnivore conflicts are on the rise in India and most of these instances predominantly involve common leopards. However, over the past few years, instances of tigers ‘straying’ into human settlements have been reported from a number of Indian states.

Plain sighting of a tiger in a human-dominated landscape does not necessarily represent a conflict situation. Conflicts generally arise when local people, dependent on forests for various needs, inadvertently come in close contact with the tiger, possibly resulting in an attack. Retaliations by people aggravate the situation.

The issues at hand include preventing these conflicts and resolving them when required. As with handling any other conservation issues, conflict mitigation requires understanding of the animal’s ecology, movement and reasons for conflict. It also requires sensitisation of the local communities to prevent casualties.

Conflict mitigation team members trace pugmarks of the conflict tiger in Shahjehanpur district

Tiger Status Monitoring: The status of tiger and its prey in the state are periodically monitored through intensive field surveys to generate baseline data that help in strategising conservation measures.

Human – Tiger Conflict Mitigation: Working closely with the state Forest Department, WTI is helping develop long-term landscape level conflict mitigation strategy and assisting in its implementation when required. The team comprising sociologists to manage the local communities and spread awareness on preventing casualties during conflicts, biologists to track the conflict animal and veterinarians to capture them, work in close coordination, to mitigate conflict situations.

A Rapid Response Team deploys captive elephants to track a conflict tiger

Rapid Response Teams: RRTs provide assistance in human-carnivore conflict mitigation and management of the conflict animals as well as in situ emergency relief to displaced or distressed wild animals, by placement of trained and equipped wildlife veterinarians and Forest Department staff in critical areas. Each RRT comprises a transport vehicle, a trained wildlife veterinarian, Forest Department staff, an animal attendant, equipment and supplies. Two RRTs – one in Dudhwa National Park and the other in Katerniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary - have been placed in the state.

Capacity Building and Training: The project undertakes capacity building of Forest Department staff to help address various conservation issues, with special focus on human-carnivore conflict mitigation. A number of trainings and workshops on conflict mitigation, capture of conflict animal through tranquilisation or trapping, conflict animal management, as well as awareness generation and formation of Primary Response Teams comprising local civilians, have been organised in the state.

Dr Rahul Kaul, Chief Ecologist, WTI addresses forest staff in Dudhwa National Park at a capacity building exercise on tiger monitoring

Human-tiger Conflict Mitigation

• The Uttar Pradesh Forest Department assisted by WTI staff members are currently engaged in attempting to capture a conflict tiger that has created wide-spread panic near Pilibhit and Shahjehanpur Forest Divisions. The team has been working with the communities and authorities to track and capture the animal using tranquilising darts and cage traps.
  
  
• The Uttar Pradesh Forest Department assisted by the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) captured a conflict tiger from Kishanpur Wildlife Sanctuary near Dudhwa Tiger Reserve on March 1, 2009. The tiger’s attack had led to the death of five people and was declared a man-eater in the last week of February 2009.

Forest staff being trained on chemical capture techniques

Capacity Building

• The first two days were aimed at ACFs, Range Officers, veterinarians and foresters. The participants were exposed to techniques for live capture of conflict animals including trapping using box/cage traps as well as chemical capture, and conflict animal management.
  
  Four subsequent two-day refresher trainings were also organised for veterinarians and frontline Forest Department staff trained a year earlier on chemical capture, placement of traps, conflict animal management, tracking and monitoring.

Rapid Response Team