Chitwan: Nepal has begun its nationwide tiger census with the installation of 1,100 camera traps across key tiger habitats, marking another phase of the scientific survey conducted every four years.
The census was officially launched on Tuesday at a programme in Sauraha, Chitwan. It is being led by the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC) under the Ministry of Forests and Environment, in coordination with the Department of Forests and Land Conservation.
Technical and logistical support is being provided by the National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC), World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Nepal, and the Geological Society of Nepal. The Nepali Army, along with buffer zone and community forest user groups, has also been mobilized for the operation.
According to the DNPWC, the census will take approximately two and a half to three months to complete, with 25 technical personnel deployed nationwide. Tiger numbers will be estimated by analyzing photographic data collected from the camera traps placed in forested habitats.
DNPWC Director General Buddi Sagar Paudel said the exercise would generate reliable data to guide future conservation strategies. “The results will help us understand the current status of the tiger population and strengthen conservation planning,” he said.
The census is estimated to cost around Rs 30 million, covering human resource mobilisation, logistics such as tents and sleeping bags, and the management of camera trap memory cards. The camera traps were procured earlier, each costing about Rs 35,000.
Nepal has used automated camera traps for tiger monitoring since 2009. Under the Tiger Conservation Action Plan, censuses were conducted in 2013, 2018, and 2022, with the current survey contributing to the 2026 tiger population assessment.
Tiger numbers in Nepal have shown a steady increase over the decades, rising from 98 in 1995 to 235 in 2018. The country has been observing National Tiger Day since 2067 BS.
Addressing growing human-tiger conflict, Paudel emphasized the importance of alternative livelihood opportunities for communities living near forests. Reducing dependence on forest resources and fostering positive attitudes toward wildlife, he said, are essential to minimizing conflict.
The number of problematic tigers has also increased, with 18 currently kept in captivity nationwide—five at the Central Zoo in Jawalakhel, seven in Chitwan National Park, four in Bardia National Park, and one each in Banke and Parsa national parks. The government spends a significant amount annually on their care and management.
Globally, the tiger population has reached 5,357 as of 2025. India leads with 3,167 tigers, followed by Russia (750), Indonesia (400), Nepal (355), Thailand (189), Bhutan (151), Malaysia (150), Bangladesh (146), Myanmar (22), China (20), Vietnam (5), and Laos (2).
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