On the road to Liberty

The summit in St Petersburg focusing on the plight of the tiger was the first international summit of its kind, though similar in content to the new Global Tiger Initiative launched by the World Bank in 2010 itself. Few of the tigers who roamed in the wild in the past remain that way at present, and many of the rest are in captivity. The greatest threat is the loss of habitat and man animal conflict. The tiger is a much valuable animal for human beings for parts like bones and skin. Environmental activists are busy blaming human beings for the problems of conservation without proposing practical solutions. My article titled "Save the tiger from those who love it" was published in The Financial Express on 7th December 2010. Russia recently hosted a summit in St Petersburg to focus attention on the plight of the tiger in the wild. This is the first international summit of this kind, where heads of states of Russia, China, Bangladesh and some of the other range countries ...

This is the Chinese year of the tiger and people are interested in saving the tiger from extinction more than ever. Several conferences are being held, and a lot of money is being thrown at saving the tiger, but all this can't work if the Government can't mitigate the conflict between locals and wild animals. The lack of agricultural productivity forces farmers to encroach on the habitat of the tigers. This has to be resolved. China and India can save the tigers by cooperating with each other. A shorter version of my article was published in The Wall Street Journal on August 25th. Asia’s economic potential was first demonstrated by the four tiger economies. In recent decade, the focus has shifted to China, India and others. While economies are growing, the real tigers in the wild are living a precarious existence. It is time to reap the environmental dividend from growing prosperity, and save the tiger from extinction. This is the Chinese Year of the Tiger! Undoubtedly, the fo...

South China Tiger is one of the most endangered sub-species of the tiger. No one really knows if there are any still around in the forests of southern China. The Chinese have been been exploring alternative strategies to save the tiger in wild. They have a successful captive breeding programme, which could help meet the demand for tiger parts in traditional Chinese medicines, and reduce the demand for wild tigers. This article, "Can a trade convention save South China tiger?", appeared in the China Daily, on 22 June 2007. The South China tiger is the most endangered of all tiger subspecies, so when it comes to protecting it, there's not much margin for error. Small wonder that the dust is still settling on the tiger issue at the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) two-week conference in The Hague, which ended on June 15. Call it concern, call it politics, the conflicts were over trade in tiger parts and the efficacy of raising South China tige...

The "Project Tiger" was launched thirty years back. But, there are only a few thousand tigers in the wild, and half of them are in India. The policy of prohibition of trade has hurt tiger conservation in India. The situation is similar in China. The officials of China are are considering harnessing a limited form of commerce for the cause of tiger conservation. At the same time, in India, the tiger crisis has expanded India’s bureaucracy.It is necessary to have a successful wildlife economy to build awareness of the value of environmental resources.This will result in the thriving of legal trade. My article titled China and India Move in Radically Different Directions was published in Perc in Fall 2006. NEW DELHI, INDIA—More than thirty years after the launch of "Project Tiger," the most high-profile conservation program in the world, barely 5,000 to 6,000 tigers are left in the wild, over half of them estimated to be in India. Since the 1970s, India has enacted to...

Recently, a dozen tigers died under mysterious circumstances over a span of a few days at the well known Nandankanan Zoo in Bhubaneswar. While the threat to the tigers in the wild is well recognised, the condition of the tigers in zoos across the country need to looked in to as well. In this article "Let the tiger earn its stripe" published in the Hindustan Times, on 16 July 2000, I note that a highly valuable animal like the tiger could well earn its keep, if we look for more creative strategies to help protect it. The king of the jungle has been on the run for some time now. And the chase to save it has also been on for a while. Yet tragedies like the one at Nandankanan happen making it worse for the majestic animal. There may be a case here for changing tack a little and throwing open the conservation effort to money, market and commerce. There are estimated to be only 7-7,500 of them left in the wild, about four or five thousand of them in India. Another couple of thous...

Isn't it ironic that almost everyone agrees that the tiger is a priceless animal, yet, after decades of effort to save the tiger the future of the tiger seem as uncertain as ever. For decades, at every international gathering on wildlife, everyone agonises at the fate of the tiger, but hardly anyone is able to come up with some fresh thinking. In this article, "Save the tiger: Commercial road to conservation" , published in the Economic Times, on 9 April 1999, I look at some of the other species that have made a come back powered by commerce. Recently, the Tiger Forum, an international gathering of countries where tigers are still economy available in the wild, and NGOs, held its meeting in Bombay. Although Project Tiger, the most famous conservation project in India and the world, has just completed its 25th anniversary the delegates did not have anything to cheer. The participants grimly reminded each other of the fall in the number of tigers, and once again predicted ...

My article titled "Save the tiger: Commercial road to conservation" was published in The Economic Times on 9th April 1999. Recently, the Tiger Forum, an international gathering of countries where tigers are still economy available in the wild, and NGOs, held its meeting in Bombay. Although Project Tiger, the most famous conservation project in India and the world, has just completed its 25th anniversary the delegates did not have anything to cheer. The participants grimly reminded each other of the fall in the number of tigers, and once again predicted that tigers may be extinct in the next 5 to 10 years. It might seem ironic that tiger, such a prized animal, is facing extinction, with barely 3600 of them around in India today. While much less valued animals - cattle, goats, pigs, poultry, dogs, etc. - have thrived, because of their value, economic and otherwise, despite being "exploited" for thousands of years. Economics of greed is responsible for the illegal kil...