Tiger reserves of India

As per the section 38 of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, the state governments are responsible preparing a Tiger Conservation Plan which includes planning and management of notified areas and maintaining the requisite competent staff to ensure the protection of the tiger reserve and providing inputs for maintaining a viable population of tigers, co-predators and prey animals.

As per Ministry of Environment and Forests, the wild tiger population in India stood at 2,226 in 2014 with an increase of 30.5% since the 2010 estimate.

Tiger reserves consist of a core area which includes part(s) of protected areas such as a national park or a wildlife sanctuary and a buffer zone which is a mix of forested and non-forested land.

Project tiger is aimed at performing the necessary activities to ensure viability of tiger population in the core area and to promote a balance between the existence of people and animals in the buffer zones.

By the late 1980s, the initial nine reserves covering an area of 9,115 km2 (3,519 sq mi) had been increased to 15 reserves covering an area of 24,700 km2 (9,500 sq mi).