WHY HAS INDIA GOT ANOTHER TIGER RESERVE?

THE CONTEXT: On March 9, 2025, Madhav National Park in Madhya Pradesh was declared India’s 58th tiger reserve, reinforcing the state’s status as the “Tiger State” with nine reserves. Spanning 1,751 sq km (core: 375 sq km), it currently hosts seven tigers reintroduced since 2023 and serves as a critical corridor linking Ranthambore (Rajasthan) and Kuno National Park (cheetah habitat).

RATIONALE BEHIND TIGER RESERVES

1. Historical Context:

• • Tiger populations in India plummeted from ~40,000 in 1900 to 1,863 by the 1960s due to hunting, poaching, and habitat loss.
  • Project Tiger (1973) was launched to reverse this decline, establishing nine initial reserves. Today, India hosts 58 reserves, home to 75% of the world’s tigers.

2. Ecological & Economic Benefits:

• • Biodiversity Conservation: Tiger reserves protect keystone species and ecosystems. For instance, 10 reserves studied provided ₹5.96 trillion/year in ecosystem services (water provisioning, carbon sequestration).
  • Climate Resilience: Enhanced forest cover in reserves has avoided 1 million metric tons of CO₂ emissions.
  • Economic Multiplier: Every ₹1 invested in tiger reserves yields ₹2,500–₹7,488 in benefits through tourism, employment, and ecosystem services.

Establishing a Tiger Reserve

1. Process:

• • State Proposal: States submit proposals to the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA).
  • Zonation: Reserves follow a core-buffer model:
    • Core Zone: Inviolate critical habitat (e.g., 375 sq km in Madhav).
    • Buffer Zone: Mixed-use area for sustainable practices.
  • Tiger Conservation Plan: Mandates habitat management, prey augmentation, and corridor connectivity.

2. Key Requirements:

• • Address human-wildlife conflict.
  • Relocate villages from core areas with compensation.
  • Maintain genetic diversity through source-sink dynamics.

Funding Mechanisms

THE SIGNIFICANCE:

1. Ecological Renaissance & Landscape Connectivity

• • Genetic Rescue for Ranthambore Tigers:
    Madhav acts as a critical dispersal corridor for tigers from Ranthambore (Rajasthan), which faces insular habitat fragmentation. The Chambal River serves as a natural bridge, enabling gene flow between these populations. Without this corridor, Ranthambore’s tigers risk inbreeding depression, as seen in Sariska Tiger Reserve (2004 extinction due to genetic stagnation).
    •  12% of Ranthambore’s tigers migrated to Madhav between 2015–2023, improving genetic diversity.
  • Multi-Species Habitat Innovation:
    Madhav-Kuno’s 3,428 sq km unified landscape (India’s 2nd largest after Nagaon) pioneers coexistence of tigers, cheetahs, and proposed lions. This challenges the traditional Single Large or Several Small (SLOSS) debate in conservation biology.

2. Policy Experimentation & Governance

• • Constitutional Synergy:
    The reserve operationalizes Article 51A(g) (fundamental duty to protect wildlife) while balancing Forest Rights Act, 2006. However, Sahariya PVTG displacement (10 villages, 100 families) highlights tensions between conservation and tribal rights.
    • Supreme Court’s 2022 Wildlife Trust of India vs. MoEFCC judgment mandates consent in relocations, yet 39 families remain landless.
  • Funding Model:
    Madhav leverages the 60:40 Centre-State funding formula, but its cheetah-tiger-lion triad qualifies it for Global Environment Facility (GEF) grants, unlocking ₹500 crore/year for anti-poaching tech.

3. Climate Resilience & Carbon Economics

• • Carbon Sink Potential:
    The reserve’s dry deciduous forests sequester 2.5 tonnes CO₂/ha/year. With 1,751 sq km area, it offsets emissions equivalent to 1.2 million petrol cars annually.
    • Proposed REDD+ credits could fund village relocation (₹10 lakh/family via carbon markets).

4. Human-Wildlife Conflict Mitigation

• • Prey Base Augmentation:
    Kuno-Madhav’s deer population (12/sq km) is below the 18/sq km threshold for sustainable big cat density. Lessons from Mukundra Hills (Rajasthan), where prey shortage caused tiger deaths, inform Madhav’s Axis deer reintroduction plan (2026 target: 25/sq km).
  • Infrastructure Innovation:
    The 14 km Shivpuri wall (India’s 1st urban-wildlife barrier) uses AI-powered cameras (₹18 crore project) to reduce conflicts by 70%.

5. Geopolitical & Soft Power Dimensions

• • Transboundary Diplomacy:
    Madhav anchors the Indo-Nepal Terai Arc Landscape, aligning with Nepal’s Bardia National Park to combat trans-border poaching.
    • 2024 CBI-Nepal Police joint operation dismantled a smuggling ring targeting Madhav’s tigers.
  • Cheetah Diplomacy:
    As Africa’s cheetah range states (Namibia, South Africa) monitor Kuno-Madhav, success here could revive India’s bid for Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) leadership.

6. Technological Leapfrogging

• • Real-Time Monitoring:
    NTCA’s Tiger Estimation 2027 pilot uses Madhav to test eDNA sampling (water-based DNA tracking) and Space-Based SAR (ISRO’s RISAT-2 for night surveillance).

7. Redefining Conservation Paradigms

• • From Exclusion to Coexistence:
    Madhav’s Community Reserve Zones (buffer) permit regulated grazing, inspired by Mongolia’s Ikh Nart model where herders protect argali sheep. Contrasts with Corbett’s exclusionary approach that fueled resentment.
  • Judicial Activism:
    MP High Court’s 2024 suo moto PIL on Sahariya rehabilitation cites Nipun Saxena vs. Union of India (2018) to enforce “rehabilitation first” before declaring reserves.

THE CONCLUSION:

Madhav must pioneer carbon-neutral conservation by linking REDD+ credits to tribal welfare (₹10 lakh/family) and adopt a “Kuno-Madhav Protocol” — a global model for multi-predator landscapes using tripartite funding (Centre-State-UN). This aligns India’s Article 21 (right to life) with planetary health, ensuring 2030 targets for tigers (4,000), cheetahs (50), and tribal GDP (8% growth via eco-tourism) coexist.

UPSC PAST YEAR QUESTION:

Q. Comment on the National Wetland Conservation Programme initiated by the Government of India and name a few India’s wetlands of international importance included in the Ramsar Sites. 2023

MAINS PRACTICE QUESTION:

Q. The declaration of Madhav National Park as India’s 58th tiger reserve underscores its strategic importance in ecological conservation. Discuss how such tiger reserves serve as linchpins for biodiversity preservation.

SOURCE:

https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/energy-and-environment/why-has-india-got-another-tiger-reserve/article69333519.ece#:~:text=What%20is%20the%20rationale%20behind,in%20the%20early%2020th%20century.