Looks like India's escalating imports of palm oil from Indonesia will see
the end of the Sumatran Tiger. While we in India would seem to be lucky in
still hosting some tigers, we, however, might well be the reason for extinction
of the tigers in Sumatra.
Despite frequent reports of tiger deaths due to poaching, negligence of
the forest staff and due to natural reasons, we still have around 1700 tigers
in our forests and their population, from all accounts, is increasing. Cubs
have been sighted in Panna Tiger Reserve which had been cleaned up by the
poachers not too long ago. Cubs have also been sighted in Ranthambore in
Rajasthan where there seems to be a problem of plenty. Tigers are reported to
have moved out of the Reserve and have been known to have migrated to the
adjoining Kuno-Palpur Wildlife Sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh.
Although we crib and criticize every time a tiger is lost in the context
of what is happening in Indonesia, another tiger country, we are considered to
be doing rather well for conservation of the species. Our
efforts at tiger conservation are earning kudos in Indonesia. Not only the
political executives are being commended for their foresight and
farsightedness, the conservationists are being congratulated for their efforts
that have yielded positive results. Many have, therefore, suggested that
Indonesia should look westwards towards India to save the Sumatran tigers.
Down to around 300 in 1970s, the Royal Bengal Tiger has recovered in
numbers. With a far more superior way of counting, the count is now more
reliable and is pegged at 1700-odd. Not a figure to write home about
considering the vastness of the country, yet given the numerous challenges, it
is a healthy count with,
Indonesia, on the other hand, is miserably down to just 400-500 of the
Sumatran tigers. Having lost Balinese subspecies 1930s and Javanese in 1970s
the only species it now has the Sumatran which is confined to a few patches of
tropical forests of the island. These remnants of the Indonesian species are
fighting a losing battle against human greed which is promoting progressive
encroachments into their habitat.
Although some reports of increase in their numbers are reported from
isolated pockets which are now conservation areas, yet their days seem to be
numbered with increasing deforestation and mushrooming oil-palm plantations.
The government, however, claims that the rate of deforestation has gone down
yet the fact remains that from the point of view of tigers it has been of
little help. They are now confined to isolated small patches of forests with no
scope for fresh genetic infusion into their small in-bred numbers putting them
under serious existential threat. As it is, the International Union for
Conservation of Nature has included it in the “critically endangered” list.
Oil palm plantations are perhaps the single largest reason for
decimation of the Sumatran species of tigers. Their profitability and
contribution to the coffers of the country have been the persistent reasons for
disappearance of the country’s once-abundant forests. More and more forests are
being cleared legally or illegally to accommodate oil palm cultivation
progressively reducing the tiger habitat. Over the last 25 years Sumatra has
lost two-thirds of its lowland forests that are the most conducive habitat for
the island’s tigers.
We in India are largely responsible for the falling numbers of the
Sumatran tigers. Two Asian biggies, China and India, are the biggest importers
of palm oil from Indonesia, India of late having overtaken China. Demand in
this country for the oil appears to be insatiable. Palm oil constitutes about
80% of the cooking oil used in India and the increasing imports at the rate of
approximately 3 to 4% per annum are fuelling deforestation and replacement of
natural forests by oil palm plantations in Indonesia in a bid to raise palm oil
production The production has now hit 50 million tonnes in 2012, India alone
having imported more than nine hundred thousand tonnes.
Used mostly as edible oil, palm oil is cheaper than other vegetable oils
and is generally consumed by the economically weaker sections of our society.
With more and more disposable income becoming available to them the demand for
palm oil has been constantly going up necessitating greater imports. A big
chunk of the oil is also used in the manufacture of cosmetics, like creams,
moisturizers, lipsticks, shampoos, etc. With rise in the number of middle
classes the consumption of cosmetics has also been going up. The multinational
cosmetic manufacturers have established manufacturing bases in the country and
their products are being aggressively promoted in the media. More than 13 to
14% of the imported palm oil is used in manufacture of these cosmetics
The trend being what it is, destruction of the tropical forests in
Indonesia is not going to stop any time soon. Perhaps, it would help if we in
India tempered down our demand for the oil. If we did that we would not
If we have been able to save our forests and the tigers therein to a
great extent, it should not be too much to ask for measures to protect the
tigers in Indonesia. After all it is a
matter of protecting the “Global Commons” we share. Like in our case, the
forests in Sumatra will survive if their tigers survive. Tigers, with their
presence, in natural forests are a vital cog in preventing and mitigating
global warming. Let us, therefore, not invite the odium of knowingly
contributing to the extinction of the Sumatran tiger with all its undesirable
consequences.
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