Of the 14 tiger skins seized in Nepal in the last 13 months, six skins were indentified to be from Nepal and eight were from India, according to reports from the Center for Molecular Dynamics, Nepal.A bilateral meeting between Nepal and India that concluded on Tuesday in New Delhi decided to carryout joint operation without any delay after finding out that more Indians are involved in the crime than Nepalis.
The meeting has laid ground for the upcoming Third Asian Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation scheduled for April 12-14 to be held in New Delhi, India.
Of the 14 citizens arrested during the period, majority of them belong to the Banjara community which is also known as Bawaria community in India. Besides, 16 out of 19 absconding Indian citizens also belong to the Banjara community.
"As there was massive involvement of the Banjara tribal community behind all the case related to tiger poaching in Nepa-India border, we decided to carry out operation to assess the population of the Banjara community, profile them, gather photos and other relevant information, keep close vigil on them, share information between the respective authorities, among others," DSP Pravin Pokharel of CIB, who participated in the meeting in India, said.
The meeting has not only decided to focus on Banjara activities but to forge joint strategies based on experience to fight the crime, he said.
More than 1,000 citizens from the Banjara community are believed to be active in Nepal-India border, alarming the concerned agencies to save the tiger population.
"We expect to double the tiger population by 2022 but there is lot to do from the Nepali side to curb the potential threats," DIG Nawaraj Silwal, who heads the Central Bureau of Investigation, said.
Sixteen tiger species are considered to be vulnerable, endangered or critically endangered due to loss of habitat, human conflict, loss of prey and increasing global trade in wildlife trophies. India has been investing USD 55 million every year to save tiger population but Nepal's investment for the same purpose is very less as compared to that of the southern neighbor.
"As poaching becomes difficult in India, the poachers are sure to target tigers in Nepal because open border poses no challenge for Indian poachers to enter Nepal," DIG Silwal added.
India is home to 70% of the total tiger population in the region and Nepal is a transit territory for tigers.
CIB's operation entitled 'Operation Wild Eagle' has identified Bardiya, Banke, Bara, Parsa, Sarlahi and Darchula as the crime-prone zones.
The Banjarja community is believed to be a part of the Roma gypsies, who used to live in the deserts of Rajasthan 2,300 years ago. They are more active from November to February and use traditional weapons and poison to kill tigers.
A recent study by the CIB has also noted that the Sauka community that has networks in Pithauragad of India, Darchula of Nepal and Taklakot of China is also a threat to the tigers.
Related story
Manage tiger-human conflict to save tigers
