THE Indian tiger is in dire straits. If reports of its falling to the poacher's bullet at the rate of one per day are true, it may not even survive this century. There were an estimated 40,000 tigers at the beginning of this century. By 1972, only 2,500 remained. But with the banning of its killing in 1970, its number increased to 4,300 in 1989. But then it suddenly started declining.
While bodies like the WWF put the blame on habitat destruction, a London-based NGO called Tiger Trust recently suggested poaching as the biggest enemy. In a controversial report titled The Big Cat Cover Up, it charged the Indian Government and WWF with misutilising millions of dollars and doing nothing for the tiger. The report states that between 1989 and 1995, Project Tiger received more than $12 million, but its "investigations reveal that funds are still not reaching the parks on time". Meanwhile the poacher is busy doing his job. Better armed and with lucrative offers from the Taiwanese and Chinese medicine makers. And so, the tiger is going one by one.
