JANAKPURDHAM: With the rise in the number of tigers in the Parsa National Park, Conservation Assured |Tiger Standard (CA|TS) certification process has been initiated to make conservation management in line with international standards.
In 2022, the Park was found to be home to 41 adult tigers, while this number soared to 71 during the latest tiger census in 2026, marking a significant achievement in tiger conservation. The CA|TS process has begun, aiming to ensure the sustainable and quality management of such accomplishments in tiger conservation.
In this connection, the CA|TS Workshop was organised by the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation at the Park premises. The event was attended by Department’s senior ecologist Haribhadra Acharya, Park chief conservation officer Ram Chandra Khatiwada, representatives from the ZSL Nepal, Buffer Zone management committee, and security agencies, park employees, members of the local consumer’s committee and other local stakeholders.
The event focused on discussions on preliminary preparations for the CA|TS, self-assessment, management improvement, evidence collections and coordination among the stakeholder concerned, said Park’s chief conservation officer Khatiwada.
The chief conservation officer further added that the rise in the number of tigers in Parsa increased from 41 to 71 from 2022 to 2026 is a significant achievement in conservation. He said, however, the challenge now is to ensure the safety and well-being of the local communities along with the wildlife.
Khatiwada stressed the need to create an environment in which local communities can directly benefit from conservation efforts, thereby fostering greater support for and partnership in wildlife conservation.
Senior ecologist Acharya expressed the view that a rise in the tiger numbers alone is not sufficient to measure the success of conservation efforts. He stressed that continuous enhancement in quality of habitat, food and its availability, security and overall management are also equally matter to ensure the long-term conservation of tigers.
According to him, CA|TS will evaluate not only the number of tigers but also the overall management system required for tiger conservation based on international standards. “So, this is an opportunity for the Park to implement this system.”
He viewed that the human-tiger coexistence, and the community’s security, awareness and participation could be made more effective by linking the Park’s the ‘Friends of the Tiger’ campaign with the CA|TS process.
Stakeholders participating in the workshop emphasized that CA|TS should be advanced not just as a process of the park getting the certificate, but as a joint campaign involving the park, buffer zones, security agencies, conservation partners, and local communities.
CA|TS will assess not only the number of tigers but also their habitat, prey, protection, management, scientific monitoring, community participation, human-tiger conflicts, tourism, and the long-term status of tigers.
Now, the process of registration, self-assessment, preparing improvement plans, compliance-related document preparation, national review, independent evaluation, and international decision-making will move forward.
During this process, Chief Conservation Officer Khatiwada said that priority will be given to habitat and the prey species protection, controlling poaching and hunting, smart patrolling, human-tiger conflict management, scientific monitoring, and community participation.
With the increasing number of tigers, the CA|TS certification process is expected to help make the conservation management of Parsa National Park more scientific, well-organized, and in line with international standards.
He explained that success in conservation depends not just on receiving a certificate of achievement, but on tigers being safe, forests being healthy, and local communities being safe and active partners in conservation.
