Maharashtra recorded 20 tiger deaths in 2018 alone

Mumbai: Maharashtra recorded the second highest number of deaths in the country in the year 2018: 20. The information was revealed in the data provided by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA).

Officials stated that while measures are being taken for conservation of tigers, in many cases the reason for tiger deaths remains unknown due to inadequate information provided by the Maharashtra government.

This year too has seen the death of at least seven tigers till April. While one tiger succumbed to natural causes, the reason for the deaths of six other tigers is still under scrutiny. “We have not got the information from the state forest department about the reason behind the deaths of other tigers,” said an NTCA official.

While two male and two female tigers had died this year, the gender of three tigers had not been established. In 2018, four tiger deaths were attributed to natural causes, one tiger died during infighting and three deaths were recorded due to unnatural reasons. Yet 12 cases of tiger deaths are still under scrutiny as the reason is unknown.

Meanwhile, the 2018 tiger census report is likely to be delayed and will be released only after the formation of a new government at the Centre, according to NTCA officials. They have stated that there is a huge data from across the country, which is to be analysed.

The four-yearly report that gives the population of tiger across the country was to be released April. However, it is not expected before June due to the addition of states in the survey, intense methods and delay by states in submitting the data.