Crouching tiger, hidden data
20 Aug. 2019
The
fourth national tiger survey has generated much euphoria, whereas the
first one in 2006 had cast a pall of gloom. However, missing from all
the four survey reports are details necessary to assess the reliability
of the tiger numbers. A brief history of India’s tiger censuses can
shed some light on this issue. The tradition of reporting tiger numbers
dates back to the 1970s. These numbers were based on the ‘pugmark
census method’, which simple-mindedly assumed that the pugmarks of
every tiger could be found, recognised and tallied. As scientific
critiques showed, these assumptions failed, rendering the numbers
meaningless. However, the forest bureaucracy (the Ministry of
Environment and allied institutions) ignored the problem for decades.
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