India on Tuesday got its 54th tiger reserve in Rajasthan's Karauli and Dholpur districts on with the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) approving a proposal in this regard. "Giant leap for wildlife conservation in Rajasthan. Happy to announce that the state has got yet another Tiger Reserve.
"The Dholpur-Karauli Tiger Reserve has been accorded the final approval by @ntca_india. Let's pledge to safeguard this precious ecosystem and its majestic tigers," Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav wrote on the microblogging site X.
Apart from Karauli-Dholpur Reserve, Rajasthan has Ranthambore has other tiger reserves including Sariska, Mukundra Hills and Ramgarh Vishdhari. Prior to this, the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has given approval to declare Kumbhalgarh as a tiger reserve, reported news agency IANS.
Minister Bhupender Yadav wrote on X: "This significant step towards wildlife conservation promises a brighter future for tigers and biodiversity in Rajasthan. The move will boost employment opportunities for the people of the region through ecotourism."
The proposed Kumbhalgarh reserve will be spread over around 2800 sq km. The technical committee has said that the state government has to submit the updated proposal indicating the core buffer and eco-sensitive zone, along with the land use.
Rajsamand MP and member of NTCA, Diya Kumari said that she has dedicated all her efforts to bring it on the ground despite many impediments. "I am happy that the Union Government today gave in-principle approval and now we can hope that Kumbhalgarh will soon become a tiger reserve,"she said.
The number of tigers in India has increased from 2,967 in 2018 to 3,682 in 2022, an annual rise of 6 per cent, according to government data.
With a 50 per cent increase in the last four years, Madhya Pradesh has the maximum number of tigers in the country (785), followed by Karnataka (563), Uttarakhand (560), and Maharashtra (444). The number of tigers in Rajasthan has increased from 32 in 2006 to 88 in 2022.