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The magnificent Tiger, Panthera Tigris,
the national animal of India, is a rich-colored well-striped animal with
a short coat. It is known for its grace, strength, agility. Out of eight
races of the species known, the Indian race known as the Royal Bengal
Tiger, is found throughout the country except the north-western region,
and also in the neighboring countries such as Nepal, Bhutan and
Bangladesh. The tiger occupies a variety of habitats from dry open
jungles, humid ever-green forests to mangrove swamps.
To check the dwindling population of tigers in India, which came down to
just 1,827 in 1972, massive conservation program was initiated in April
1973, known as the 'Project Tiger'. This project aims to maintain a
viable population of tigers in India for scientific, economic,
aesthetic, cultural and ecological values. Since then, the tiger
population has shown a gradual increase and the census of 1989 puts the
tiger population of the country at 4,334. So far, 19 tiger reserves have
been established in the country under this project, covering over 29,
716 sq. km. forest area.
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Tiger in Action
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