Tiger Reserves in India (53 Tiger Reserves with States) – Project Tiger & Importance

What are Tiger Reserves in India?

Tiger Reserves in India consist of a core tiger habitat, which would be managed as an inviolate area. These habitats are designated under the Wild Life Protection Act 1972. The Tiger Reserves in India must be preserved for the conservation of Tigers without compromising the rights of local tribes and other forest inhabitants.

Tiger Reserves in India Notes

The National Tiger Conservation Authority is in charge of 53 Tiger Reserves in India. As per the reports, around 80% of tigers in the world are found in India and it becomes important for the government to protect these species. In 2006 there were a total of 1411 tigers and the numbers have increased to 2,226 in 2018.

• BioSphere Reserves in India
• Difference Between Wildlife Sanctuary, Biosphere Reserves and National Park

Which is the new Tiger Reserve in India?

A new Tiger reserve in India, presumably the 4th in the area, covering an area of 1,440 sq km, has come up in the northern province of Madhya Pradesh.

• The forest was created by carving out the core areas of two protected areas – Guru Ghasidas National Park and Tamor Pingla Wildlife Sanctuary to create the largest contiguous protected area in Central India.
• Tiger corridors are being saved and conserved under this mega project.
• It will be part of the famous Madhya Pradesh corridor which passes through the national park and the wildlife sanctuary and forms a vital part of the tiger dispersal route.

History of Indian Tiger

Let’s take a look at some facts about the Indian Tigers below.

• In the wild, Tigers are currently found in Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Sumatra, Vietnam, Nepal, China, Russia, India, Bhutan, and Malaysia.
• The Indian/Bengal tiger is found mainly in Bhutan, India, Nepal, and Bangladesh.
• Habitat: Tigers are found in equatorial and sub-tropical woods, mangrove swamps, evergreen forests, and grasslands.
• The tigers have been reported in temperate forests of the Himalayas as well.
• IUCN status: Endangered
• WPA Status: Tigers are listed under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act
• Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES): Appendix I.

New Tiger Reserve in India

The project aims to protect the tigers from poaching, traffic, and habitat loss by creating contiguous forest patches. The region is around 100 km from the previously existing tiger reserves, Indravati, Achanakumar, and Udanti-Sitanadi.

• The state government of Madhya Pradesh has been working on creating this new national park since 2011.
• Now that it’s finally completed, the decision has been met with much praise from wildlife conservationists and environmentalists who say it will help protect and preserve some of the world’s most endangered species, including tigers and leopards.
• Tiger experts consider this new reserve a pioneering effort to save tigers from extinction.

Significance of Tiger Reserves in India

The new Tiger Reserves in India are a dream come true for conservationists. As a result, there has been an increase in the geographical area covered by the natural habitats of tigers.

• The largest tiger reserve in India is Nagarjunsagar, commonly known as Srisailam, in Andhra Pradesh.
• The Indian government has set up a new tiger reserve in Chhattisgarh to protect this national asset further and boost numbers.
• After all, a tiger reserve is not only about tigers. It is about creating an ecosystem that supports flora and fauna.
• This corridor will provide an assured prey base for predators like tigers, leopards, and panthers in the core area.
• It will also facilitate the exchange of gene pools between different populations of wild cats and create territorial linkage between two isolated tiger populations in central India.
• For years, the new reserve’s size and quality and the commitment to maintaining it as a protected area give hope that tigers will continue to share our forests.

List of Tiger Reserves in India [53 Tiger Reserves in 2022]

Let’s take a look at the Tiger Reserves present in the state of India.

State	Tiger Reserves in India State Wise
Andhra Pradesh	Nagarjunsagar Srisailam
Arunachal Pradesh	Namdapha National Park Kamlang Tiger Reserve Pakke Tiger Reserve
Assam	Manas Tiger Reserve Nameri National Park Orang Tiger Reserve Kaziranga National Park
Bihar	Valmiki National Park
Chhattisgarh	Udanti-Sitanadi Wildlife Sanctuary Achanakmar Wildlife Sanctuary Indravati Tiger Reserve Guru Ghasidas National Park and Tamor Pingla Wildlife Sanctuary
Jharkhand	Palamau Tiger Reserve
Karnataka	Nagarahole National Park Biligiri Ranganatha Temple Tiger reserve Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary Dandeli-Anshi Tiger Reserve Bandipur Tiger Reserve
Kerala	Parambikulam Tiger reserve Periyar Tiger reserve
Madhya Pradesh	Bandhavgarh Tiger reserve Pench Tiger reserve Sanjay-Dubri Tiger reserve Kanha Tiger reserve Panna Tiger reserve Satpura Tiger reserve
Maharashtra	Nagzira Tiger Reserve Melghat Tiger reserve Pench Tiger Reserve Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve Bor Tiger Reserve Sahyadri Tiger Reserve
Mizoram	Dampa Tiger Reserve
Odisha	Satkosia Tiger Reserve Similipal Tiger Reserve
Rajasthan	Ranthambore Tiger Reserve Sariska Tiger Reserve Mukandra Hills Tiger Reserve Ramgarh Vishdhari
Tamil Nadu	Mudumalai Tiger Reserve Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve Anamalai Tiger Reserve Srivilliputhur – Megamalai Kalakad-Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve
Telangana	Kawal Tiger Reserve Amrabad Tiger Reserve
Uttar Pradesh	Amangarh Tiger Reserve Pilibhit Tiger Reserve Dudhwa Tiger Reserve
Uttarakhand	Jim Corbett National Park Rajaji Tiger Reserve
West Bengal	Sunderban National Park Buxa Tiger Reserve

Critical Facts about Tiger Reserves in India

• As per the Tiger Census Report, 2019, the Tiger population has significantly increased from 2,226 in 2014 to around 2,967 in 2019.
• Madhya Pradesh has the highest number of tigers at 526, followed by Karnataka (524) and Uttarakhand (442).
• Jim Corbett National Park in Uttarakhand has the most Tigers in India, followed by Nagarhole and Bandipur in Karnataka, Bandhavgarh in (Madhya Pradesh) and Kaziranga in Assam.

Tiger Reserves in India 2022 – Additional Schemes

Project Tiger:

• Project Tiger was launched on the 1st of April 1973 to promote the conservation of Tigers in India.
• It is a 100% centrally sponsored scheme that provides funds to help the ‘tiger range States’ for in-situ conservation of tigers in the chosen tiger reserves.
• The National Tiger Conservation Authority administers Project Tiger (NTCA)
• The Project aims to promote an exclusive tiger agenda in the core areas of famous Tiger Reserves in India, with inclusive people participation.

Tiger Census:

• Since 2006, the Indian government has been conducting Tiger Census every four years, led by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), with cooperation from various state forest departments and conservation Non-Govermental Organizations.

M-STrIPES:

• Monitoring System for Tigers – Intensive Protection and Ecological Status, a software-based monitoring system, was launched across Indian tiger reserves in 2010.
• Its objective is to strengthen patrolling and surveillance of the endangered Bengal tiger.
• CITES, or The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna, has been approved by over 160 nations, making global trade in tiger body parts illegal.
• India has been a signatory of this convention since the year 1975.

St. Petersburg Declaration on Tiger Conservation:

• At the Petersburg Tiger Summit in 2010, leaders of 13 tiger range countries, including India, resolved to take all necessary measures to conserve Tigers globally and embarked on efforts to double their number in the wild.
• The slogan for this initiative was decided as ‘TX2’. The Pilibhit Tiger Reserve and Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve have won the TX2 award after their Tiger numbers doubled since 2010.

Threats to Tiger Reserves in India

• Poaching is still among the significant challenges to the conservation of Tigers.
• Every part of the tiger has great market value, thus promoting hunting by professional poachers, local hunters, trappers, pirates, and villagers.
• Climate change and global warming increasing global temperatures have forced tigers and other species to shift their belts and migrate towards colder regions.
• Natural disasters such as large-scale forest fires are a great threat.
• Human encroachment of tiger habitats for livestock grazing, infrastructure expansion, and farming is a cause of concern.
• Infrastructural development such as railways and roadways severely threaten Tiger habitats.

UPSC Notes
Essential Commodities Act 1955	SATAT Initiative
Horizontal and Vertical Reservation	CAMPA Act
Sanyasi Revolt	Sattriya Dance of Assam