Guriya Minz of Steel Plants Sports Board (SPSB) delivers a punch at Garima Sharma of Uttar Pradesh during the Sixth Senior National Women?s Boxing Championship at JRD Tata Sports complex. Minz won the bout. Picture by Bhola Prasad

Jamshedpur, Nov. 30: The state forest department will carry out a census of the tiger population along with other animals across the state?s forests from December 12.

The first phase of the process, a nine-day extensive exercise which will conclude on December 21, would estimate the population of tigers along with other cat species and fauna in all territorial and wildlife forest divisions.

Scientists and experts from the Dehradun-based Wildlife Institute of India (WII) will, for the first time, be roped into estimate the state?s animal population.

Chief wildlife warden U.R. Biswas told The Telegraph that the state forest and environment ministry would adopt three latest methods to estimate the animal population in the region.

?The three methods include collecting statistical data, camera-trapping and tracking of pug marks. Forest officials from beat officers to conservators will be involved in the first phase. They will attempt to collect statistical data on the animal population in their respective areas,? said Biswas.

Studies in the second phase would be conducted on the range of animals found in a particular habitat vis-?-vis the ?carrying capacity? of the number and range of animals.

This is to be done with the aid of the WII.

The exercise will be an extensive and elaborate one. Each parameter would be graded on a scale of zero to 10.

According to forest department authorities, about 1,053 beat-level officers, 350 forest range officers, 50 divisional forest officers and eight conservators will take part in the exercise, scheduled to be undertaken between December 2005 and February 2006.

Senior forest department officials said the tiger population in the state is concentrated in Betla Wildlife Sanctuary in Palamau region and the Hazaribagh National Park area.

The conservator of forests (wildlife division), D.K. Shrivastav, the estimation of carnivore population across all forest territories would help the state forest and environment ministry to get an idea about the situation of ?ecological balance? in the region.

Dhalbhum sub-divisional forest officer Satyajit Singh and other senior officials recently underwent training at Madhya Pradesh (Kanha National Park) in this regard.