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Kolkata, Nov 10 (IANS) The Sunderbans, Bengal’s mangrove forest and home to the Royal Bengal Tiger, will remain closed for tourists on December 11 and 12 as the forest department will conduct a tiger census.
According to the official instructions issued by the Sundarban Tiger Reserve (STR), all types of tourism including boat rides, launches and cruises will remain completely suspended during these two days.
Even online booking for the forest will remain closed as the department will focus on collecting accurate scientific data on the tiger population.
An STR official said, “A total of 1,484 camera traps will be set up in different areas of the Sundarbans, covering about 4,100 square kilometres. The cameras will keep an eye on the big cats and their hunting activities for more than a month, after which the data will be analyzed to determine the actual tiger population. We want the tiger count to be done with complete scientific accuracy. That is why it has been decided to suspend tourism.”
Apart from monitoring tigers, the census will also include survey of prey species like deer, wild boar and goats to assess whether the ecological balance is being maintained.
For the first time, a dedicated mobile application will be used by field officers and forest workers to send photographs and real-time updates directly to the central database, ensuring greater transparency and efficiency in the process.
The 2022 tiger census, released in late 2024, recorded 101 tigers in the Sundarbans, up from 88 tigers in 2018. Of these, 80 were within the main Sundarban Tiger Reserve and 21 were in the adjacent South 24 Parganas division.
A census of tigers in the Sundarbans is usually conducted once every four years, although smaller surveys and field-based observations occur annually.
The work of installing cameras will start from November 26. Forest personnel have already been trained for this and detailed instructions have been given regarding where to install the cameras and how to install them. About 250 workers will be deployed in different areas throughout the campaign.
–IANS
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