The officials said on condition of anonymity that they were clearly told by the National Tiger Conservation Authority that no funds would be provided for the tiger census this time and that the department had to fund the initiative from its own resources. | Photo credit: DEEPAK KR
The upcoming wildlife census in Telangana as part of the All India Tiger Census-2026 could be plagued by resource crunch this time, both in terms of money and manpower.
The department has not yet received any funds from the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), which as part of ‘Project Tiger’ has been funding a quadrennial (every four years) tiger census since 2006. Officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they were clearly told by the NTCA that no own funds would be provided from the initiative and that no own resources would be made available to the department.
“We have been asked to use the funds of the Tiger Conservation Foundation, a statutory body set up for every tiger reserve that gets revenue from eco-tourism and other revenue-generating activities. But unlike other tiger reserves in the country, we have almost no money here with the foundations, so it is as good as zero funding,” the official said.
The officials said on condition of anonymity that they were clearly told by the National Tiger Conservation Authority that no funds would be provided for the tiger census this time and that the department had to fund the initiative from its own resources. | Photo credit: DEEPAK KR
Another hurdle to overcome is manpower. With only 60% of the Forest Beat officers on the ground, it could be a daunting task for the department to conduct the census. Telangana has a minimum of 3000 beats to be covered and each beat has to be covered by a minimum of two to three persons, with at least one person from the department.
With the number of officers killed at less than 2,000, it is a difficult task to divide them up for a census. The department is thus completely dependent on NGOs to recruit volunteers for the survey. On Friday, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Head of Forest Force C. Suvarna convened a meeting with representatives of NGOs and proposals were sought for recruitment of full-scale volunteers. They were told that at least 5,000 to 6,000 people were needed to carry out the exercise smoothly.
Chief Conservator Elusing Meru said the volunteers will undergo a training program at the Telangana State Forest Academy, followed by a series of training programs in the districts. NTCA has already conducted training for selected District Forest Officers, Divisional Forest Officers and Forest Constables who will act as Trainers of Trainers. The actual census may be done sometime in December or January, depending on the climate. Before that, camera traps will be set up from November last week to capture reliable data for digital processing.
Already 30 NGOs are in touch with the department, Field Director, Amrabad Tiger Reserve, Sunil Hiremath shared. Representatives of Hyderabad Tiger Conservation Society (HyTiCoS), Deccan Birders, Friends of Snakes, WWF-India, Voice of Nature, Greater Hyderabad Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and Animal Warriors were some of the NGOs that attended the meeting on Saturday.
A new feature in the tiger census this time will be the enumeration of mega herbivores, which are practically non-existent in Telangana. Paperwork has been completely removed for data collection and M-STRIPES (Monitoring System for Tigers: Intensive Conservation and Ecological Status) itself will be used to update records. Unlike earlier apps, the app now works offline, officials said.
Published – 31 Oct 2025 20:52 IST
