A government survey in Sundarbans has found that the number of Royal Bengal tigers in Bangladesh鈥檚 Sundarbans has increased to 125.
The survey was conducted between June 2023 and March 2024 to observe the population of the national animal of Bangladesh.
Unveiling the findings at Bangladesh Secretariat on Tuesday, environment, forest and climate change adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan said that the increase rate was 9.68 per cent compared to the previous survey in 2018.
Earlier, in 2018 tiger population was counted as 114 and in 2015 it was 106.
鈥楾he steady increase in the tiger population indicates good forest health. It has been possible for several reasons, including preserving 53.52 per cent of the national forest, minimising tiger and human conflicts and taking measures against poaching,鈥� Rizwana said.
According to the survey report, the number of tiger cubs has also increased significantly.
In 2024, at least 21 cubs were recorded.
The number of cubs has not been included in the list of total number of tigers because the surviving rate of the cubs is very low.
In 2024, surveyors divided Sundarbans into 605 parts and set 1,210 cameras to observe the movement of tigers for 318 days.
Forest Department officials said that the government measures, such as 60-kilometre fencing near localities to stop tiger attack on villagers, setting 12 shelters for animals in the forest during disaster and activating 49 response teams to send back tiger safely if any enters the locality, also helped to grow the tiger population in the forest.
Currently, tigers remain in only 10 countries, including Bangladesh, while tigers have gone extinct in the forests of Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. Globally, the tiger population stands at 3,840, according to the adviser.
International Union for Conservation of Nature listed tiger as a critically endangered animal in Bangladesh in 2010.
Tigers used to be found in 13 countries across the world. Now they are found only in 10 countries, including Bangladesh and India.
According to the Forest Department, the Bangladesh portion of the Sundarbans covers an area of 6,017 square kilometres, of which 4,832 square kilometres is forestland and 1,185 square kilometres is wetlands.