Tigers in Kanha to be recounted

The tiger census, released in March, put the number of tigers in India at 1,706, an increase of 295 over the 2006 figure.

Madhya Pradesh, which earlier had around 300 tigers, including 89 in Kanha, saw the number of wild cats shrinking to 257, with Kanha's population at 60.

The state was overtaken by Karnataka, which has about 300 tigers, thus earning the tag of India's 'Tiger State' - a badge Madhya Pradesh wore proudly till now.

"We do not agree with the tiger census numbers. We have decided to conduct the counting between April 25 to 27. We will later send this report to the Wildlife Institute of India (WII)," State Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (PCCF), wildlife, H.S. Pabla told IANS.
Spread over an area of 1,945 sq km in Mandla district, the Kanha National Park was set up in 1955.

The decision came after union Environment and Forests Minister Jairam Ramesh's two-day visit to the state's Panna National Park, which ended Sunday.