By IANS,
New Delhi: The tiger census will be released on March 28, Environment and Forests Minister Jairam Ramesh said Wednesday, adding that he was expecting some good news.
Though the minister Wednesday said he was expecting good news, he had told the Lok Sabha last week that 161 tigers have died – 51 due to poaching – since 2008.
As many as 14 tigers have died in the country this year till February, including two due to poaching, he added.
The tiger census this time was being conducted in a more scientific manner, using DNA sampling compared to census based on pugmarks earlier.
“The census is in the final phase and we will come to an exact result in next few days,” said a senior ministry official.
The last census in 2008 showed a sharp fall in tiger population, showing India had only 1,411 tigers in the wild.
India was home to about 3,000 tigers around two decades ago.