Tiger symposium to kick off

Experts on tiger conservation are meeting in Kathmandu from April 16 to 20 to find ways to save the endangered species from being totally extinct.

Out of the eight sub-species of tigers, only five species — Siberian tiger, South China tiger, Indo-Chinese tiger, Sumatran tiger and Royal Bengal tiger — are found these days. It is believed that around 5,000 to 7,000 tigers are left in the world.

SC Dey, the general-secretary of the Global Tiger Forum, said that around 100 representatives from 12 countries are participating in the International Tiger Symposium.

The symposium is being organised by the MoFSC and Global Tiger Forum (GTF) in cooperation with national and international conservation partners.

Dey said the representatives will present some 20 papers and come up with ways to protect the remaining species of tigers from being extinct.

The chairman of the organising committee, Ananta Parajuli, said that the symposium, among others, will encourage countries to prepare and implement their individual tiger action plans for protection and growth of the tiger population and its prey base.

The population of tiger is reported stable in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and Russia and its on the decline in India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Laos.

Jhama Bahadur Karki, the conservation officer at the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, said Nepal’s tiger population is between 350 and 370. nepalnews.com pb Apr 16 07