Mysuru: “High-tension power lines, roads, railway lines passing inside forests and human activities inside forests are not only disturbing tigers but also disturbing the entire wildlife which is forcing them to come out of forests leading to man-animal conflicts,” said P.S. Somashekar IFS (Retd.).

He was speaking as the chief guest at the World Tiger Day celebration at Mysuru Zoo here this morning.

International Tiger Day or World Tiger Day is celebrated to create awareness on tiger conservation throughout the world as well as the challenges faced by conservationists today.

He said “If we conserve and protect one animal, it is like conserving all animals and also protecting nature.” Stating that tiger is an unique animal and a big cat, Somashekar said that in 80s and 90s, pressure was given for the protection and conservation of this magnificent animal as tigers were on the verge of extinction.

He said that earlier, tigers were hunted for entertainment and in 1973, Tiger Protection Act came into force which resulted in the increase of their population gradually. Providing the statistics of tiger population in the country, he said that as per 2006 census, there were 1,411 tigers, 2010- 1,706 tigers, 2014-2,226 tigers and now more than 3,500 tigers in the country, he said that tiger census is being conducted every year in the country and count is being taken through pug marks, camera trapping and other means. He further said that national-level tiger census is being conducted once in four years.

Stating that there were 50 Tiger Reserves in the country now as against only 9 in 1973, Somashekar said that in a bid to protect the National Animal, eco-sensitive zones are created around all Tiger Reserve Forests in the country.

At present, there are eight      tigers housed in Mysuru Zoo and six in Koorgalli Rehabilitation Centre in city. The Zoo Youth Club was inaugurated on the occasion.

Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Member Secretary, Zoo  Authority of Karnataka (ZAK) B.P. Ravi, Mysuru Zoo Executive Director Ajit Kulkarni and others were present.

Anamorphic art of tiger draws crowd at Mysuru Zoo

An anamorphic art of a tiger by city artist Anil Kumar Bhogashetty at the entrance of the Zoo attracted a lot of people who thronged the spot to have a glimpse of the tiger.

Anamorphic art is a distorted projection or perspective requiring the viewer to use special devices or occupy a specific vantage point (or both) to reconstitute the image.  A conical or cylindrical mirror is placed on the drawing or painting to transform a flat distorted image into an apparently undistorted picture that can be viewed from many angles. The deformed image is painted on a plane surface surrounding the mirror. By looking into the mirror, a viewer can see the image.

Bandipur: Meanwhile, Bandipur National Park, which is one of the prestigious tiger reserves in the country and houses more than 100 tigers in the wild, celebrated the day with a special programme to mark the occasion during which a postal cover on tigers was released by India Post.

Ambadi Madhav, Director, Bandipur Project Tiger, said that about 6,500 envelopes would be printed by India Post and will be used by the Forest Department for official communication through postal means. He further said that tourists and        visitors were provided with useful information about tiger and the need to protect these big wild cats.