First as a hobby and then for utility, tigers have been relentlessly hunted over the years in India. From symbolising the pride of maharajas to becoming a means of surplus illegal profit, tigers have witnessed constant and brutal human intervention in their pristine ecosystem. While not much can be done about colonial times or before, when conventions governing human-wildlife interaction were limited, surely we can alter their crippling fate today. Now, protection of these big cats is paramount as they have come under Schedule I of Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, which provides absolute protection to tigers and highest penalty in case of offence. An Act of Parliament disrespected so blatantly only draws a pitiful picture of us. We have failed tigers, as we have failed so many other species on the brink of extinction. And, while these other species do not really occupy daily discussions, tigers most certainly do. Calling these big cats the national animal of India and then waking up to the news of 429 tigers being killed by poachers since 2008, draws an uncomfortable paradox. How can we allow such a reprehensible act to occur, especially when not much time has passed since India's tiger population hit an alarming low? 'Just 1,411 tigers left' – this worrisome statement had done its rounds across the nation, nurturing a profound concern. This grim reminder appeared enough to wake up the authorities, compelling them to work out counter-measures to restore the decline. And, it did happen. 'Save our Tigers' got the response it needed. From 1,411 we had reached 2,226 in the 2014 census, where an estimation was jointly drawn by National Tiger Conservation Authority, state forest departments, Wildlife Institute of India and conservation organisations including WWF-India. The country breathed a sigh of relief as the alarming situation had abated. However, poaching did not. It went on, like it had, with constant reports surfacing of tigers being poached, and offenders sometimes being apprehended and otherwise not. The tiger poaching issue has always been relevant to Indian forests. If our faulty development had already not done enough to intrude the pristine environment that we had promised for tigers, poachers further aggravated their ordeal. Tigers are predators. Sitting at a high in the food chain, they cannot be confined to a designated area. They prowl and they hunt. While tiger reserves grew vigilant of any illicit activity occurring in their vicinity, poachers also grew smarter. Instead of physical hunting, they laid traps and recovered the dead tiger when they could for its parts, burying the carcass. This way, the authorities would often not have an inkling of poaching unfolding under their noses. Census is not an everyday affair and keeping a regular track of numbers is a herculean task, one which the poachers have incessantly capitalised upon. According to data from Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, under the Ministry of Environment and Forests, the maximum killings took place in 2011 with 80 tigers slain. Coincidentally, 2011 was also the time when 'Save our Tigers' was catching pace after the National Tiger Conservation Authority had pointed out the 1,411 figure.
Beyond the figures and the sinusoidal poaching instances in recent times, lies a crucial question. Why poach these creatures who have been safeguarded in reserves, away from the human world? The answer is the exorbitant price for body parts that these poachers accrue. Money, inevitably, becomes relevant. Should these poachers, villagers from the vicinity of these reserves, be involved in protecting these beasts instead of killing them, the narrative of tigers in India would be different. While India eyes to set up more tiger reserves across the nation, including locals in the tiger protection paradigm will equip the periphery to contain poachers and their illicit trades. Tigers are the pride of this nation and we ought to do our best to provide them with a secure habitat. And, not just tigers, in the last four years alone, at least 260 leopards have been poached. It is not just tigers that are subject to poaching. In this situation, local awareness and increased vigilance are imperative to curb poaching in general. Otherwise, these beasts do not even remain safe inside so-called reserves that have been defined to protect them. Killing animals mercilessly for their utility has been a dreadful societal ordeal. India must resolve the rising instances of poaching or the animal kingdom will soon diminish in the face of hostile human intervention.