The tiger population in Rajasthan has gone up with the birth of 28 cubs in the last two years, including two last month, wildlife officials said today.
"Twenty-five tiger cubs were born in Ranthambore (National Park) and three in Sariska (Tiger Reserve) from 2016 to 2018 till date," Rajasthan's Chief Wildlife Warden (CWLW), G.V Reddy, told PTI. He described this as an achievement and a morale booster, considering the high mortality rate in tigers due to natural and anthropogenic causes. The current strength of tigers in Rajasthan stands at 85, including 70 in Ranthambore, 14 in Sariska and one in Mukundara Hills National Park. Field Director of Ranthambore National Park, Y.K Sahu, attributed the growth in numbers to the rehabilitation of villagers living in forest area, curbing illegal activities such as poaching and increasing prey base for the big cats. Eight tigers were translocated from Ramthambore to Sariska in 2008 to help boost the numbers of the wild cats. Three tigresses gave birth to seven cubs in Sariska Tiger Reserve between 2012 and 2017. Two cubs were spotted last month after a gap of two years. Reddy, who is also a member of Standing Committee of the State Board for Wildlife (SBWL), said that in a meeting of the body in April, several recommendations were made to prevent poaching of tigers in Sariska. The recommendations included fitting tigers with GPS-enable radio collars, round-the-clock monitoring by separate teams and relocation of villages from the reserve's periphery.