NATIONAL TIGER CONSERVATION AUTHORITY (Syllabus: GS Paper 3 – Environment)

Context: A recent letter from the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) urging 19 states to prioritize the removal of villagers from core tiger zones has sparked criticism from various organizations and activists, who have expressed their concerns to the Union Environment Minister.

National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA)

• About: It is a statutory organization created under the Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Act, 2006 following the recommendation of the Tiger Task Force.
• Constituted under: Section 38 L (1) of Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
• Chairperson: Minister of Environment .
• Members include: The authority consists of the Minister in charge of the Ministry of Environment and Forests, the Minister of State in the Ministry of Environment and Forests (as Vice-Chairperson), three members of Parliament, Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Forests and other members.
• Objectives:

oTo grant statutory authority to Project Tiger, making compliance with its directives a legal requirement.

oTo enhance accountability in the management of Tiger Reserves by facilitating Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) between the Center and State governments within the federal structure.

oTo establish parliamentary oversight in the process.

oTo cater to the livelihood concerns of local communities residing in the vicinity of Tiger Reserves.

Core Zone

• About: It refers to the portion in a tiger reserve where tribals cannot live and activities such as hunting and collecting forest produce is banned. 
• According to the Wildlife Act: Core zones are to be ‘inviolate’ and these must be made so by coaxing residents to “voluntarily relocate” on “mutually agreed terms and conditions”.
• Buffer Zone: There is a concentric circle outside the ‘core zone’ called the buffer zone where these restrictions are eased but regulated.
• Statistics: There are 55 tiger reserves in India across 19 States with 848 villages comprising 89,808 families in the core zone. 
• Since 1973, 257 of these villages comprising 25,007 families have been relocated.