The Killing Fields of Pilibhit

The death of the tiger in Pilibhit brings to fore, again and again, and again the irregularities and the ineptitude of the forest department in naming and dealing with problem tigers. A fantastic specimen is lost due to the apathetic department – who were unskilled, inexperienced and not following the NTCA SOPs.

Following one of the NTCA SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) that states “In case of a healthy tiger/encumbered tigress occupying a sugarcane field or similar habitat, attempt should be made first to attract it to the nearby forest area, while avoiding disturbance. If such operations fail, the animal should be captured through immobilisation for release in a low-density area of a nearby tiger reserve/protected area after radio collaring,” an attempt to tranquillise the tiger resulted in its death with the below rules flouted (as per our first-hand information)

The tiger was in the very area for 3 days, while the forest department resorted to pushing the tiger into the forest by throwing stones at it, firing in the air and by hitting it with a stick.
No written letter or order by the CWW. Only an oral order was given.
Four darts were fired by three veterinarians. But Deputy Director later clarifies that two shots of 5 ml and 1.5 ml were administered, which in fact is itself a deviation (by more than 100%) from the NTCA stipulated 3 -3.5 ml of the tranquilliser.

Each time a tiger died in a botched operation has led to formulation or implementation of stricter procedures. For instance, the death of Avni (T-2 of Pandarkawda) has procedurally banned enlisting private hunters or non-department people for eliminating/tranquillising/capturing of conflict-tigers, and also to the abolishing of word – man-eater from all official or press correspondences. One of the most important reason is the public awareness, involvement and the pressure mounted over the department, and that’s the intent of this article.

Tiger numbers in Pilibhit

In 2010, the number of tigers in Pilibhit were 43. Before declaring a Tiger Reserve in June 2014, the count was 30 tigers, while in January 2015, the number fell to 27.

By 2016-17, the numbers rose to 36; by 2018, the count went up to 45 and by August 2019, there are an estimated 58 tigers.

Given the contiguity with Royal Suklaphanta Wildlife Reserve of Nepal and also being an integral part of the Terai arc, it will never be possible to estimate the number of tigers in Pilibhit; this and the location in Uttar Pradesh, one of the most densely populated states of India, and the most populous country subdivision in the world, gives rise to an entire set of problems not limited to poaching.

What should freak us out is that there are no (or less) instances of infighting or other natural related deaths. It either means, such cases are under-reported. Also, all the cases seem either of lynching or getting washed up in canals, which is worryingly peculiar.

The below is the death of tigers in Pilibhit around the time the park was declared as a tiger reserve.

Tiger Deaths in Pilibhit

A lot of these deaths aren’t featured in mainstream media. Some appeared as just a flash in a single news channel. Will update more details as necessary.

May 2012 – 2 tigers poisoned, bodies recovered in a suspected poaching case, Haripur range.
13^th August 2012 – Tiger body found in Hardoi branch of Sharda Canal, Puranpur
22^nd May 2013 – 2 tigers dead at Dagga ghat. Killed by poachers
November 2013 – Tiger body recovered.

Tiger deaths after Pilibhit was declared a Tiger Reserve.

19^th October 2014 – Tiger dead in Mahof range.
24^th April 2015 – Tiger’s body found in a canal in Hardoi canal, Puranpur between Madhotada and Dagga
11^th Nov 2015 – Tigress beaten to death with sticks and rods in Bijnaur close to Halduwala village
28^th Feb 2017 - Tiger's body found in Ghungchai Canal
3^rd May 2017 – 2 tiger cubs dead in Mala range.
12^th July 2017 – Tigress body found in Hardoi branch of Sharda Canal, at Navadia Banki in Khutur range.
29^th March 2018 – Tiger’s body found in Sharda Sagar Dam.
11^th April 2018 – Tiger’s body found near outlet canal of Sharda Sagar Dam, near Barahi forest range.
19^th April 2018 – An adult male tiger was beaten to death and throat slit in Mahof range.
20^th May 2018 – Tiger’s body found in Rajwah Kharja canal track near Dagga
July 2018 *: A rotten carcass of a tiger was found in Sutiya Nala, a market ghat in the border area.
August 2018 * – Tiger’s body found in river Devha at Deuni dam in Pilibhit’s Amaria block
September 2018 * - Tiger body found in Sharda canal.
26^th July 2019 - 6-year old tigress lynched. Beaten to death with sticks and rods near Mathena village.
15^th September 2019 – Tigress body found in Sharda canal, Navinagar village.
10^th Feb 2020 – Tiger found in a canal in Puranpur area.

Tigers shifted to zoos or other parks

5^th September 2016 – Tiger from Mallapur shifted to Lucknow Zoo. (later named Mallu)
20^th February 2017 – Tiger from Barahi and Mala forest ranges caught and shifted to Lucknow zoo.
11^th March 2017 – supposed man-eater Tiger from Navadia shifted to zoo. (later named Mustafa)
6^th February 2018 – tigress caught in Vidipur translocated to Kartaniya Ghat Bahraich.
5^thMarch 2018 – Tiger (Chandu) caught in Chandumpur translocated to Dudhwa National Park
4^th April 2020 – Tigress caught after purportedly killing two humans in Mala range.

The shocking factor is that more than 60% of the tigers found dead are washed up along the canals; bodies recovered in decomposed state.

Tiger deaths apart, innumerable people have been killed by tigers over years leading to a lot of speculative theories that the Pilibhit tigers are predisposed to becoming man-eaters.

As per a 2018 report, ‘Living with the Wild—Mitigating Conflict between Humans and Big Cat Species in Uttar Pradesh,’ jointly undertaken by the WTI and the Forest Department,

79% occurred inside forests or on the fringes
5% occurred in crop fields, primarily sugarcane.
7% were recorded to have occurred close to human habitations/houses.

90.6% of the tiger attacks happened during the day time, suggesting that the attacks were accidental in nature.

In a bid to reduce the presence of prey animals close to human habitation that attracts a tiger, cultivation of medicinal and aromatic crops was proposed in October 2019. Another proposal to translocate as many as 10 tigers (from Pilibhit to was already on the cards, as of March 2020, but given the current conditions due to Covid-19, this may not be feasible sooner or later. Some have even suggested fencing to reduce the attacks on humans which only blocks dispersal paths, genetic material exchange in the very rich Terai arc etc. All these are workarounds and underlying problems are not addressed.

The threats to Tigers of Pilibhit

Pilibhit shares a porous boundary with Nepal, thus being an important tiger reserve and connectivity in the Terai arc. But this opens up a variety of challenges along with the heightened human activity in and around these forests.

Poachers

The meandering river Sharda creates isolated islands along the borders of Nepal and India. In addition to the proximity to international borders, and the difficulty for Indian patrols to access the interiors and the small islands, the age-old tribes that lived in Pilibhit shifted to a more profitable business, may be in 80s.

In as late as January 2015, ten poachers were arrested by Nepali police and 9 out of these 10 were from Pilibhit. Hunting tribes such as Gaddis and Bawariyas are supposed to be the big threat to these tigers of Pilibhit then. The modus operandi is to trap a tiger, by poisoning or trapping and thrusting a stick down the tiger’s throat (if alive).

The poisoning theory - It is supposed that most (if not all) tigers found dead along the banks or floating in the canals of Sharda river (mentioned in the list above) are actually poisoned individuals that reach the water to quench the thirst (arising out of consuming poison) and ultimately end up carried along the canals. Most of the bodies are recovered in a very advanced state of decomposition.

Post-mortems are never made public or the causes seem to be swept under the carpet, in many instances.

A Bizzare Trend

Mala range (the same where the current tiger died to tranquilizer overdose) has been in news for an outlandish and bizarre trend. As per a report by Kalim Athar of the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) that has been submitted to the NTCA (National Tiger Conservation Authority), in the villages of Pilibhit, elderly members of the family are sent into the forests, so that they become a deliberate prey. The bodies are then relocated to the nearby fields, to claim compensation from the government (Compensation is not paid, if a human being is killed inside the Tiger Reserve; the death has to happen in a human habitation, such as a crop field or buffer area). This in addition to the below mentioned reason is one of the reasons for the high number of tiger related casualties. Unfortunately, there is no quantifiable number to these casualties.

Crop cultivation

As per the WTI report, 54.79% of tiger attacks occurred largely inside forests or on their fringes while 31.5% occurred in crop fields, primarily sugarcane. In a tiger’s eye, the contiguous sugarcane field is nothing but an extension of forest. Additionally, these fields harbour wild boars and hog deer, an integral part of the tiger’s food chain, and also sufficient water needed for agricultural purposes.

Illegal trespassing

The report also stated that 38.6% attacks were on people who went to collect firewood and other forest products. 32.9% of the attacks happened when people were working in the fields and 23.3% of the attacks happened when people were moving around, or openly defecating etc.

This piece of information combined with the location of attacks (mentioned in 3) proves beyond doubt that most tiger attacks are not as a result of ambush or predatory nature (as is generally showcased or propagated) but very much accidental

What needs to be done?

Every tiger reserve (not Pilibhit alone) should release a press-note stating the facts of the death of a tiger (and a human-death if that’s tiger related). This will stop the spread of misinformation and could help with issues such as lynching.
The postmortem reports of the tigers dead in Pilibhit over the past decade need to be studied (need not be made public). A root-cause analysis of the deaths could lead to a pattern. Suppose the deaths are indeed caused by poisoning, it could mean poaching is rampant in these parts.
An immediate relocation plan needs to be devised (on a war footing) to shift all the villages and human habitations on the encroached forest lands inside the core or the Critical Tiger Habitat. This is in line with the basic definition of a core area of a tiger reserve.
A high-level committee to be formed about relocating problem-tigers to identify if they are indeed problem-tigers. NTCA should revise the definition or give more clarity on classifying an individual as a problem-tiger. A written order by a CWW or a PCCF should be mandated for capturing a problem tiger.
Setting up of wildlife rescue centres for housing problem-tigers, treating ailing tigers or re-wilding of abandoned cubs etc, on the lines of Kanha or Pench TRs which have huge enclosures for such tigers. These individuals are some of the strongest and healthiest specimens and such individuals shouldn’t be allowed to rot in a cage in Lucknow or Kanpur zoo. If not feasible in Pilibhit, Dudhwa TR should be considered as a viable option
Collaring and monitoring of a few individual tigers (because the tigers here present a unique opportunity and difficulty) – which could probably tell us dispersal patterns in the entire Terai arc; which hasn’t been studied.
Since this area has a very high incidence of tiger-human conflict, if the need arises, services of vets from other tiger reserves to be employed.
Maintain a checklist of NTCA SOPs and a proper report of what rules are followed and what rules are flouted with photographic evidence (of course). This will help in identifying problematic areas.
Need transparency and accountability by the forest department.
NTCAs new definition of problem-tigers as ‘Dangerous to Human life’ to be explained in detail. For example, a tiger that accidentally killed humans cannot be termed ‘dangerous to human life’ and packed off to an enclosure for the rest of its life. The current tiger, if it were to be alive, would have been shifted to a zoo (in addition to following the definition, there being no rescue centres in the entire U.P. state)