Tiger census to start soon

The government will soon conduct a tiger census through camera trapping along with various other activities to conserve tigers, Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Md Shahab Uddin said on Friday.

At a virtual event on the occasion of the World Tiger Day - 2022, he said the ministry was implementing a three-year project titled ‘Sundarbans Tiger Conservation Project’ to protect tigers.

Under this project, for the 3rd time the tiger survey will be conducted in the Sundarbans, counting the number of tiger prey - deer and pigs - constructing nylon fencing or enclosures in 60-km area adjacent to localities of Sundarbans, various activities related to tiger conservation and research will be started soon, the minister said.

The World Tiger Day is celebrated on July 29 every year as per the declaration by the heads of states of 13 tiger-rich countries in Russia’s St. Petersburg in 2010 to promote tiger conservation.

This year the theme of the World Tiger Day is ‘Tiger is our pride; it is everyone’s responsibility to protect them’. 

According to the latest survey conducted in 2017-2018, there are about 116 Royal Bengal Tigers in our Sundarbans region and according to the 2020-2021 survey, around 96 tigers in India’s Sundarbans region,” Minister Shahab Uddin said.

According to the IUCN Global Species Red List-2020, the number of tigers in the world is about 4,485, he said.

The tiger has been designated as an endangered species in the world due to deforestation.

Shahab Uddin said for free roaming and breeding of tigers, 52 per cent of the Sundarbans area has been declared as a protected area.

On the other hand, in Sundarbans, 80 new ponds and renovation of existing ponds have been undertaken to meet the demand for freshwater for tigers and other wildlife.

As a precautionary measure 49 village tiger response teams were formed to stop the tiger-human conflict as they very often come to localities.

Besides, they are working to protect wildlife, he said.

The minister said the Bangladesh Wildlife Act provides a maximum of 12 years of imprisonment and a Tk15 lakh maximum fine for killing a tiger.