Manas National Park’s Tiger Team earns The International Rangers Award

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• Apr 8, 2021 | moderator

Guwahati: Manas National Park Ranger Team was awarded the IUCN, WCPA (International Union for Conservation of Nature- World Commission on Protected Areas) International Rangers Award for the untiring efforts of rangers of Manas National Park, Assam to help conserve the tiger population in the National park.

The award ceremony which was held virtually on Wednesday awarded the Manas Tiger team consisting of 12 members, along with 18 other national parks from across the World.

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These awards, developed through collaboration between the IUCN WCPA, the International Ranger Federation, Global Wildlife Conservation, and Conservation Allies, aim to highlight and felicitate the extraordinary work that rangers do in protected and conserved areas worldwide.

MNP Director Amal Chandra Sarmah said, “This special recognition has not only boosted our officials and frontline staff and the whole Manas team in their efforts for better conservation and protection of Manas, but also put us in a more challenging task for better conservation, protection and management of Manas which we are happy to accept. We are confident and optimistic of doing better in the coming days.”

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 “I congratulated all the members of Manas National Park Ranger Team and the whole Manas family from the core of my heart.” added sarmah.

The National Park was in a concerning condition in the 1990s as the animal population had decreased and poaching had become rampant. In 2010, the tiger population was just 10, but with conservation efforts, the population went up to 30 in 2020. The park census is underway for 2021, but the Director said that around 10 more tigers have been found.

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Likewise, the population for other animals like rhinos, wild buffaloes, bison, elephants etc has thrived too.

Moreover, the team has been awarded with Rs.2,13,000 for the betterment of the park.

In November 2020, Manas National Park (Manas Tiger Project) and Royal Manas National Park in Bhutan received the TX2 Conservation Excellence Award for 2020 by the Global Tiger Forum. TX2 stands for “Tigers times two”, signalling the goal to double the population of wild tigers by 2022.

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