The All India Tiger Estimation 2018, released last year, has entered the Guinness World Record for being the world’s largest camera trap wildlife survey. The official site of the Guinness Book of World Record reads “Every four years since 2006, the Indian Government’s National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) collaborating with state forest departments and conservation NGOs have conducted a nationwide assessment into the country’s population and habitat of tigers. The fourth iteration of the survey conducted in 2018–19 was the most comprehensive to date, in terms of both resource and data amassed.”

Paired camera traps were placed at 26,760 different locations across 139 study sites, which generated approximately 35 million photos (including 76,523 tiger and 51,337 leopard photos). The 2018 ‘Status of Tigers in India’ assessment also conducted extensive foot surveys that covered 522,996 km of trails and sampled 317,958 habitat plots.

Reacting on the achievement, Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said India fulfilled its resolve to double tiger numbers four years before the target. The country now has an estimated 2967 tigers as per the latest census. “Our census of tigers entered Guinness World Records because we have installed more cameras to monitor them as compared to other countries. Their population is nearly 70 per cent of the world’s tiger population,” Javadekar said.

Apart from setting a new world standard, the results validated India’s efforts in tiger conservation. Javedekar tweeted about the achievement, saying that this is a shining example of Atma nirbhar Bharat which in the Prime Minister’s own words, was attained through sankalp se siddhi. India’s tiger population has grown roughly by about one-third, from 2,226 in 2014 to 2,927 in 2018.

About All India Tiger Estimation

The All India Tiger Estimation done every four years is directed by the National Tiger Conservation Authority with technical support from the Wildlife Institute of India. It is implemented by the State Forest Department and partners.