By Arun Pratap Singh
Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 2 Nov: The tiger population in Rajaji Tiger Reserve is set to increase further next January as the park administration prepares to bring five more tigers from Corbett Tiger Reserve under the second phase of the tiger relocation programme. The Forest Department is aiming to complete the translocation process by the first fortnight of January. In preparation, forest personnel from Rajaji Tiger Reserve as well as the Dehradun, Raiwala and Haridwar forest divisions are being provided specialised training. Under the first phase of the project, five tigers were relocated to Rajaji between 2020 and 2025. Speaking to Garhwal Post, Director of Rajaji Tiger Reserve, Dr Koko Rose has confirmed that 5 more tigers would be relocated to Rajaji National Park from Corbett Tiger Resreve.
Efforts have been underway for several years to establish a stable tiger population in the western part of Rajaji Tiger Reserve. With this objective, a tiger reintroduction project was launched under the guidance of the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA). In June this year, the park administration received approval from the NTCA to bring five additional tigers from Corbett Tiger Reserve. According to Rose, the proposed relocation includes three tigresses and two tigers. The administration had made a detailed presentation before the NTCA to secure approval for the move. The initiative is expected to strengthen the tiger population in the western region of the reserve and contribute significantly to biodiversity conservation.
Extensive preparations are being undertaken this time in view of the challenges experienced during earlier relocation exercises. Forest personnel are being trained in tiger monitoring, identification of pugmarks and other direct and indirect signs of tiger presence, installation of camera traps and inter-departmental coordination. The training programme is being conducted with the support of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). Forest personnel from Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Haryana are also scheduled to undergo similar training during November.
It may be reminded here that the tiger relocation plan for Rajaji Tiger Reserve was formulated in 2016 and received approval from the National Tiger Conservation Authority in 2018. The first tiger under the programme was relocated to the Motichur range on 24 December, 2020. This was followed by the relocation of a tigress on 9 January, 2021, another tigress on 20 May, 2023, a tigress on 16 March, 2024 and a tiger on 1 May, 2025. With these relocations, the reserve’s western landscape received five tigers, including two males and three females.
One of the relocated tigresses later gave birth to four cubs, raising hopes for the establishment of a breeding population in the region. However, none of the cubs could survive. At present, two tigresses and one male tiger are known to be within the reserve area, while two tigresses have remained untraceable for a prolonged period. Forest officials suspect that the missing tigresses may have moved beyond the reserve into adjoining areas of Himachal Pradesh. Efforts are continuing to determine their current location. It may be reminded here that a couple of tigers have in past few months been spotted in Himachal Pradesh.
The reserve administration’s attempts to build up the tiger population in the western region had earlier received a setback despite promising signs. In 2024, the birth of four cubs had generated optimism among wildlife managers. However, two of the cubs were reportedly killed in attacks by a leopard, a conclusion supported by post-mortem findings. The remaining two cubs subsequently went missing and could not be traced.
Rajaji Tiger Reserve currently has a tiger population of around 55, with all of them concentrated in the eastern section of the reserve, which is connected to Corbett Tiger Reserve and allows natural movement of big cats. The western part had effectively become devoid of tigers due to numerous human-made barriers restricting wildlife movement. Rajaji is divided into eastern and western sections by the Ganga river. The eastern section comprises the Gauri, Chilla and Rawasan ranges, while the western section includes the Haridwar, Kansrao, Motichur, Dholkhand, Beribara, Chilla Wali and Ramgarh ranges. Roads, the Chilla canal and other man-made obstacles have limited tiger movement into the western landscape despite the availability of abundant habitat and prey resources. Wildlife experts believe the western section has the capacity to support a much larger tiger population.
Rajaji Tiger Reserve Director Koko Rose said forest personnel are being trained in tiger monitoring, identification of pugmarks and other signs of tiger presence, installation of camera traps and coordination mechanisms. The training is being conducted with the support of WWF, and five more tigers will soon be relocated to the reserve as part of the ongoing effort to strengthen the tiger population in the western landscape.
