During his visit to Karnataka on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the International Big Cats Alliance (IBCA) and emphasized the need for a universal effort in wildlife protection.
The alliance is an extension of the call he made on Global Tiger Day in 2019 for an alliance against poaching and illegal wildlife trade in Asia. The focus of the IBCA is on the conservation of the world’s seven major big cats, including tiger, lion, leopard, snow leopard, puma, jaguar, and cheetah, and countries that are home to these cats will be part of the alliance.
PM Modi believes that mobilizing financial and technical resources for the entire ecosystem associated with the big cats while ensuring their conservation and protection will be easy through the alliance. Under the alliance, member countries will share their experiences, help each other more quickly, and emphasize research, training, and capacity building.
The Prime Minister also inaugurated the commemoration of 50 years of Project Tiger at Mysuru University in Karnataka and released ‘Amrit Kaal Ka Vision for Tiger Conservation’, which is a summary report of the 5th cycle of management effectiveness evaluation of tiger reserves.
In his address, PM Modi highlighted India’s unique achievements in wildlife conservation, stating that protecting nature is part of the culture in India.
Despite having only 2.4% of the world’s land area, India contributes 8% to known global biodiversity. India is the largest tiger range country in the world, the largest Asiatic elephant range country with nearly 30,000 elephants, and the largest single-horn rhino country with a population of nearly 3,000.
India is also the only country in the world to have Asiatic lions, and its population has increased to 675 in 2020 from around 525 in 2015. The PM also mentioned that India’s leopard population increased by over 60% in four years.
PM Modi further highlighted the work being done to clean up rivers, such as the Ganga, and how some aquatic species that were once considered in danger have shown improvement. He credited the people’s participation and a culture of conservation for these achievements.
In conclusion, PM Modi’s launch of the International Big Cats Alliance is a significant step towards the conservation and protection of big cats and their associated ecosystems.
India’s unique achievements in wildlife conservation serve as an inspiration to the world, and the country’s commitment to conservation is evident through its various conservation efforts
