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India lost 110 tigers in 2019 being yet another dark year for the national animal.

According to Wildlife Protection Society of India (WPSI) which is a non-government organization, one-third of the 110 tigers i.e., 38 tigers were lost to poaching.

The deaths of the tigers has been increased as it has been recorded as 104 deaths in the year 2018. out of the 110 deaths in 2019, 26 were found dead, 36 died in a fight with other tigers, three of them died due to accidents such as rail or road, 38 by poachers where as six during rescues.

Madhya Pradesh being titled as ‘India’s Tiger State’ lost 23 tigers in 2019 and has recorded to be the highest number than any other states. Maharashtra bagged second with the number of tiger deaths being 19, while Karnataka lost 16 during the same time period.

However, the difference in the figures has been observed as the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) which is the country’s apex tiger conservation body recorded 92 tiger deaths in 2019 and 102 in 2018.

According to the latest tiger count, the population of the tigers has increased from 2,226 in 2014 to 2,967 in 2018 with Maharashtra being recorded as an increase from 190 in 2014 to 312 in 2018 where as Madhya Pradesh tops the list with 526 tigers.

The alarming situation has also been raised by the population of leopards being reduced as it has been observed only marginal difference in the reduction of leopards being killed to poaching and accidents from the number of leopard killing being 500 in 2018 to the number being 491 in 2019.

By Shrithika Kushangi