File photo of tigers. An entire village has been relocated in the northern Indian state of Rajasthan to protect tigers, officials say. |
An entire village has been relocated in the northern Indian state of Rajasthan to protect tigers, officials say. More than 350 people from 82 families in Umri village, in the Sariska tiger reserve, moved to a new location. The number of tigers in Sariska had dwindled to zero before growing to five over the last three years. Tiger numbers have shrunk alarmingly in India in recent decades. A 2011 census counted about 1,700 tigers in the wild. A century ago there were estimated to be 100,000 tigers in India. Umri is the second village in Sariska to be relocated to help secure a proper habitat for tigers to increase their numbers. The villagers moved last week. There are 11 villages with a population of nearly 2,500 people located in the heart of the tiger reserve which need to be relocated to improve the habitat, Rajasthan's chief conservator of forests, PS Somasekhar, told the BBC. People living in these villages mostly belong to pastoral tribes. Mr Somasekhar said efforts were being made to relocate four more villages over the next few years. "It is a long-drawn process because the villagers have to agree to move out. We can't force them to leave. We can only persuade," he said. The villagers are compensated with land, cash and livestock worth up to 1 million rupees ($20,000) and relocated to the nearest cultivable plots outside the reserve, Rajasthan's chief wildlife warden AC Chaubey told the BBC. The number of tigers in the 886-sq-km Sariska reserve dropped to zero from a high of 16 in 2002. "To maintain a reserve of this size, we need a minimum of 20 female tigers to help with the breeding and a viable population of 80 to 100 tigers," Mr Somasekhar said. India's most recent tiger census, held last year, indicated that numbers had increased to 1,706 from 1,411 at the last count in 2007. (Read by Lee Hannon. Lee Hannon is a journalist at the China Daily Website.) (Agencies) |
印度政府日前表示,為了保護(hù)數(shù)目急劇減少的老虎,已將位于該國北部拉賈斯坦邦的一座村莊整體遷移。 整體遷移的烏木里村位于薩瑞斯加老虎保護(hù)區(qū)內(nèi),村里82個(gè)家庭的超過350人已經(jīng)遷移到了其他地區(qū)居住。 薩瑞斯加保護(hù)區(qū)內(nèi)的老虎數(shù)量在過去三年內(nèi)增加到5只,而在此之前已經(jīng)瀕臨滅絕。 近幾十年來,印度的老虎數(shù)量顯著下降。2011年的統(tǒng)計(jì)表明,印度的野生老虎數(shù)量為1700只。而在一個(gè)世紀(jì)以前,印度大約有10萬只老虎。 烏木里村于上周遷走,是薩瑞斯加老虎保護(hù)區(qū)內(nèi)為了給老虎提供合適的棲息地、幫助增加老虎數(shù)量而遷走的第二個(gè)村莊。 拉賈斯坦邦的森林保護(hù)主管PS Somasekhar告訴BBC,有11個(gè)村莊、近2500人居住在這個(gè)老虎保護(hù)區(qū)的核心地帶,他們都需要遷走,來改善老虎的生存環(huán)境。 這些村民大多是牧民。 Somasekhar先生說,將在今后幾年內(nèi)著手搬遷另外4個(gè)村莊。 他說:“搬遷是個(gè)長期過程,因?yàn)樾枰鞯么迕裢?。我們不能?qiáng)制搬遷,只能說服大家?!?/p> 拉賈斯坦邦的野生動(dòng)物負(fù)責(zé)人AC Chaubey告訴BBC,村民會(huì)得到土地、現(xiàn)金和牲畜補(bǔ)償,總價(jià)值可達(dá)到100萬盧比(合兩萬美元),還可以搬遷到保護(hù)區(qū)外最近的可耕作土地上。 薩瑞斯加保護(hù)區(qū)面積886平方公里,2002年老虎數(shù)量多達(dá)16只,而后幾乎瀕臨滅絕。 Somasekhar先生說:“為了保持種群數(shù)量,我們需要至少20只母虎繁殖后代,還需要80至100只能存活的老虎?!?/p> 印度去年的老虎數(shù)量調(diào)查在去年進(jìn)行,結(jié)果顯示,老虎數(shù)量已經(jīng)從2007年調(diào)查時(shí)的1411只增加到1706只。 相關(guān)閱讀 駱駝過多成負(fù)擔(dān) 澳議員呼吁“殺駱駝救地球” (中國日?qǐng)?bào)網(wǎng)英語點(diǎn)津 Julie 編輯:陳丹妮) |
Vocabulary: viable: 能養(yǎng)活的,能生育的 |