International Tiger Day 2023: Census reveals there are 435 tigers in Karnataka

The Tiger census held in Karnataka has revealed that there are about 435 tigers in the state, said the Forest and Environment Minister Eshwar Khandre. Ahead of International Tiger Day on July 29, the minister released the details of the Tiger census. The tiger census is conducted once in four years, according to the regulations of the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA). Elephants, carnivores and other herbivorous animals are also being counted in the census.

Karnataka is leading in the number of tigers, as most parts of the state belong to the Western Ghats. The Tiger census was carried out scientifically during the year 2021-22. The five tiger reserves in Karnataka -- Nagarhole, Kali, Bandipur, Bhadra and Biligiriranga -- contain the maximum number of tigers in the state.

(PHOTOS) PM Narendra Modi at Bandipur Tiger Reserve

Along with these 5 reserves, the state has 37 wildlife sanctuaries, where the Tiger census was conducted and the numbers have been recorded. Camera traps and line transects were used for the census.

5,399 camera traps used

To conduct the tiger census in Karnataka, about 5,399 cameras were used in the wildlife sanctuaries of Karnataka. From these cameras, about 66 lakh images of wildlife animals, have been captured through these cameras. The number of tigers was calculated based on their territory, and the stripes on their body -- with the help of modern technology. 

During the 2018 tiger census, 404 tigers were recorded through these camera traps. Now, there are currently 435 Tigers, which denotes that the number of Tigers are increased by 31.

612 camera traps were installed in Bandipur, 330 in Bhadra, 288 in BRT, and 502 in Nagarhole. 376 tigers have been found in these tiger reserves, whereas the rest of the remaining 59 tigers were found in the other wildlife sanctuaries of Karnataka.

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Khandre thanked the two late Prime Ministers Rajeev Gandhi and Indira Gandhi for their contributions towards the forests. They implemented Forest Protection Act, Wildlife Protection Act and Forest Right Act and conserved the forests. This is why, the Forests of India have been conserved and are taken care of, for the current generation.

Tiger census was conducted in India for the first time in the World. After the Implementation of the Wildlife Conservation Act in 1972, the tiger census began in the country at Jharkhand’s Pulmav Tiger Reserve. Currently, the census is being conducted all over the country, every once in four years, he added.