PATNA: As many as 13 tiger deaths have been reported in India so far in 2010. If one adds the two cases in which tiger body parts were seized this year, the number of big cat deaths stands at 15 this year.
It is more or less a continuation of the previous year's trend when as many as 66 tiger deaths and 29 cases of seizure of tiger body parts were reported from different parts of the country.
An alarmed National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has planned a review of the tiger protection strategy. It may issue fresh guidelines to protect the big cats in a better way. NTCA has convened a meeting of directors of the 39 tiger reserves of the country to discuss the issue. Experts from Wildlife Institute of India (WII)- Dehradun and chief wildlife wardens of 17 states, where these reserves are situated, have been invited to the meeting which would be held at Jim Corbett National Park from April 10 to 12.
On April 10, NTCA member secretary Rajesh Gopal along with other senior NTCA officials would discuss the issue with forest officials of northern and north-eastern states. Forest officials of central states would share their views with the NTCA on April 11 and on the last day it would be the turn of those coming from the southern states.
"Existing measures taken by different tiger reserves for protecting the big cats, their intelligence-gathering mechanism, problems facing them at ground in implementing the safety guidelines and reasons for tiger deaths would come up for discussions," NTCA deputy inspector general (DIG) Satya Prakash Yadav told TOI over phone from Delhi on Monday.
He said, suggestions would also be sought from field officials and WII experts regarding steps needed to improve the safety measures for tigers.
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