Why in News?

• The 3rd Stock Taking Conference on Tiger Conservation was inaugurated in New Delhi. Third in a series of Stock Taking Conferences, this is the second to be held in India after 2012 and is expected to have wide-ranging discussions on the status of the Global Tiger Recovery Program (GTRP) by the 13 tiger range countries besides deliberations on combating wildlife trafficking.

Highlights:

• Tigers are part of our planet’s natural heritage, a symbol of Earth’s biodiversity. They are a key species, crucial for the integrity of the ecosystems in which they live.
• As top predators, they keep populations of prey species in check, which in turn maintains the balance between herbivores and the vegetation upon which they feed.
• In short, when tigers thrive, the whole ecosystem thrives. This, in turn, provides important financial, cultural and spiritual benefits for local communities who live with or near tigers.
• This is the second stock-taking conference to be held in India after 2012, wherein progress against resolution adopted by tiger range countries in 2010 at St. Petersburg, Russia, is measured against Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) as decided by the said countries.
• Global and National Tiger Recovery Programs (GTRP/NTRP) were formulated by respective tiger range countries as a consequence of this historic decision.

St. Petersburg Declaration in 2010:

• During the St. Petersburg declaration in 2010, tiger range countries had resolved to double tiger numbers across their range by 2022.
• At the time of deliberations at St. Petersburg, India’s tiger estimate stood at 1411, which after the third cycle of the All India Tiger Estimation, 2014 has nearly been doubled to 2226.
• This has largely been possible because of strides made against Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), predominant among them being legislation to ensure protection of tiger habitat and enhancement of penalties, besides providing a statutory basis for inviolate space.

Tiger range countries:

• The 13 Tiger Range Countries (TRCs) are Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam.