Wildlife India News | Special Report | September 22, 2026
India has 58 tiger reserves, but not all of them have resident tiger populations. Some have lost their tigers to poaching and declining prey, while others remain isolated from the forests that could supply new breeding animals. A few are beginning to recover.
The distinction matters. A tiger reserve recording zero animals in a national census is not necessarily tiger-free today. Equally, the occasional appearance of a wandering male does not mean that a reserve has recovered a breeding population.
This report examines the reserves that recorded zero tigers in the 2022 national estimation, explains the reasons behind their decline and considers other reserves where tiger populations remain critically small.
The analysis uses the 2022 All India Tiger Estimation, published in 2023, alongside developments reported through September 2026. The 2022 figures are the national census baseline, not a claim that every reserve has the same status today.
The five tiger reserves that recorded zero tigers
The 2022 national assessment identified five reserves with no recorded wild tigers: Dampa, Kamlang, Kawal, Satkosia and Sahyadri.
Part I: Why the five reserves lost or failed to establish tiger populations
1. Dampa Tiger Reserve, Mizoram
Zero in 2018 and 2022
Dampa presents one of the most concerning cases in the national assessment.
It was the only reserve among the five to record zero tigers in both the 2018 and 2022 estimations.
Why are tigers absent?
Dampa’s difficulties involve several interacting factors.
Low prey availability: Tigers require sufficient populations of medium- and large-bodied wild animals. Hunting pressure on deer, wild pigs and other prey can undermine a forest’s ability to support resident tigers.
Hunting and snaring: Illegal hunting threatens both tigers and the animals they depend upon.
Landscape isolation: Dampa lies in a complex hill landscape near the Bangladesh border. Restoring its tiger population requires more than protecting the reserve internally; suitable connections to surviving tiger populations are also necessary.
Slow natural recolonisation: When nearby source populations are small or separated by difficult terrain and human activity, replacement tigers may not arrive regularly.
The national assessment identifies protection, prey recovery and habitat restoration as priorities for reserves in this category.
What is needed?
Dampa requires systematic prey monitoring, stronger protection against hunting and an assessment of functional connections with neighbouring forests.
Any proposal to introduce tigers would need to establish that the reserve can support them and that the causes of the earlier decline have been addressed.
Assessment: Dampa’s absence of tigers is a long-standing conservation problem, not merely a temporary gap between sightings.
2. Kamlang Tiger Reserve, Arunachal Pradesh
Zero in 2022
Kamlang occupies a mountainous forest landscape in eastern Arunachal Pradesh.
Its designation as a tiger reserve provides legal protection to important Himalayan and northeastern forest ecosystems. However, the 2022 assessment recorded no tigers within the reserve.
Why are tigers absent?
The available national assessment does not establish a single definitive cause for Kamlang’s zero count.
Several factors require investigation.
Limited prey and hunting pressure: In northeastern forest landscapes, hunting of wild ungulates can substantially reduce the food available to large carnivores.
Low-density tiger populations: Tigers naturally occur at lower densities in some mountainous and northeastern habitats than in productive floodplain or central Indian forests.
Difficult monitoring conditions: Rugged terrain and dense vegetation complicate wildlife surveys. Nevertheless, the official 2022 result remains zero recorded tigers.
Connectivity: A viable breeding population would depend on surviving source populations and safe dispersal routes.
It would be inaccurate to conclude from the census alone that poaching, habitat destruction or prey scarcity individually caused Kamlang’s tiger absence.
What is needed?
A reserve-specific investigation should establish prey abundance, hunting pressure, habitat suitability and connectivity before any restoration programme is considered.
Assessment: Kamlang’s zero count is confirmed for the 2022 assessment, but the relative importance of the possible causes requires further evidence.
3. Kawal Tiger Reserve, Telangana
Zero in 2022; no established breeding population
Kawal is perhaps India’s clearest example of a tiger reserve where prey availability alone cannot explain the absence of a resident population.
Located in northern Telangana, it forms part of the wider landscape connecting tiger habitats in Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh.
A long-term study covering 2010–2022 found that its prey base could potentially support approximately 35–41 tigers. Yet the reserve has failed to establish a resident breeding population.
Why are tigers absent?
Fragmented wildlife corridors: Roads, railway lines, mines, irrigation infrastructure and expanding human land use have made movement from neighbouring tiger populations increasingly difficult.
Very few females arrive: The study documented 15 dispersing tigers entering Kawal over approximately a decade, but only two were females.
This is particularly important because a reserve cannot establish a breeding population through occasional visits by males alone.
Human-wildlife conflict: Dispersing tigers must cross agricultural and inhabited landscapes, where they may encounter livestock, dangerous fencing and conflict with people.
Failure of natural recolonisation: Even though the reserve has prey, the surrounding landscape does not reliably deliver breeding animals.
What is needed?
Restoring connections through the Kagaznagar landscape is a major priority.
Wildlife crossings, protection of remaining forest corridors, conflict prevention and community participation could improve movement.
Researchers have also proposed evaluating assisted dispersal of female tigers, subject to appropriate ecological assessment and official approval.
Assessment: Kawal demonstrates that a forest can have sufficient prey yet remain without resident tigers because it is functionally disconnected from breeding populations.
4. Satkosia Tiger Reserve, Odisha
Zero in 2022
Satkosia’s history is particularly significant because the reserve previously supported tigers and later became the site of India’s first inter-state tiger translocation programme.
In 2018, a male tiger named Mahavir and a female named Sundari were brought from Madhya Pradesh as part of an effort to rebuild the population.
The experiment encountered serious difficulties.
Mahavir was found dead, while Sundari became involved in a human-wildlife conflict controversy and was subsequently confined. The programme was suspended.
By the 2022 national assessment, Satkosia recorded no wild tigers.
Why did the population disappear?
Poaching and inadequate protection: Historical tiger losses and protection failures were major concerns in the landscape.
Declining prey: A depleted prey population reduces the reserve’s capacity to support resident tigers.
Human-wildlife conflict: The Sundari episode exposed weaknesses in preparedness and local acceptance during the reintroduction effort.
Management and monitoring challenges: Translocated animals require careful selection, release planning, monitoring and rapid responses to conflict.
The failed translocation demonstrates that moving animals into a reserve is not sufficient when underlying ecological and social problems remain unresolved.
What is needed?
Satkosia requires secure habitat, recovery of wild prey, effective anti-poaching measures and sustained cooperation with surrounding communities.
Any renewed reintroduction programme would need to incorporate lessons from the 2018 experience.
Assessment: Satkosia’s tiger disappearance reflects historical population decline compounded by difficulties in restoring the species through translocation.
5. Sahyadri Tiger Reserve, Maharashtra
Zero in 2022
Sahyadri lies in the northern Western Ghats and encompasses important forest habitats around Chandoli National Park and Koyna Wildlife Sanctuary.
Despite its extensive forest cover, the reserve recorded no tigers in the 2022 assessment. The national report also identified local tiger disappearance from the landscape.
Why are tigers absent?
Low prey density: A large forest area does not automatically support a large tiger population. Adequate densities of sambar, gaur and other suitable prey are essential.
Historical hunting and disturbance: Losses of tigers and their prey can leave a landscape without enough breeding animals to recover naturally.
Fragmented connections: Movement between Sahyadri and tiger-bearing forests farther south is important for recolonisation.
Absence of a resident breeding population: Occasional tiger movement, where documented, cannot substitute for established males and females reproducing within the reserve.
The national assessment recommends protection, prey augmentation, habitat restoration and carefully planned reintroduction for reserves with no or very few tigers.
What is needed?
The priorities are restoring prey, protecting habitat connections and determining whether natural recolonisation is feasible.
Translocation should be considered only after the ecological and management conditions necessary for survival have been established.
Assessment: Sahyadri’s forests retain conservation potential, but habitat extent alone has not produced a resident tiger population.
Part II: Other Tiger Reserves on the Brink
The five tiger reserves that recorded zero tigers in the 2022 national estimation are only part of the conservation challenge.
Several other reserves recorded just one tiger or extremely small populations. Some had occasional visitors but no secure breeding population.
Important: The population figures below refer to the 2022 national tiger estimation. They should not be interpreted as the current population of these reserves in September 2026.
Reserves With One Tiger or Extremely Small Populations
The following reserves were reported to have just one tiger in the 2022 reserve-level assessment:
- Buxa Tiger Reserve, West Bengal: One tiger. The principal challenge is establishing a resident breeding population through natural recolonisation or a scientifically planned restoration programme.
- Palamau Tiger Reserve, Jharkhand: One tiger. Prey recovery, protection and population restoration remain important conservation priorities.
- Indravati Tiger Reserve, Chhattisgarh: One tiger. Protection, human disturbance and landscape connectivity are important concerns.
- Udanti–Sitanadi Tiger Reserve, Chhattisgarh: One tiger. Its extremely small population requires stronger protection and connectivity with neighbouring tiger habitats.
- Namdapha Tiger Reserve, Arunachal Pradesh: One tiger. The reserve faces challenges associated with maintaining and monitoring a very low-density tiger population.
- Mukundara Hills Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan: One tiger. Losses among its small reintroduced population have complicated efforts to establish a stable breeding population.
- Ramgarh Vishdhari Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan: One tiger. Establishing a viable breeding population is an important conservation objective.
These figures represent the historical census baseline. Subsequent translocations, births, deaths and natural movements may have changed the situation in individual reserves.
Buxa and Palamau: Important Developments in 2026
A June 2026 report stated that the National Tiger Conservation Authority had approved tiger population-restoration plans for Buxa and Palamau.
At Buxa, authorities were considering further steps towards introducing tigers.
At Palamau, officials were working on prey augmentation, including the introduction of suitable wild herbivores, before determining when tiger reintroduction could proceed.
Both reserves had recorded zero tigers in an earlier national assessment before recording one each in 2022.
However, the presence of a single tiger does not establish a breeding population. Successful recovery requires resident males and females, reproduction and the survival of subsequent generations.
The Complete Official Warning List
The national tiger assessment identified 16 reserves with no tigers, male-only populations or fewer than five tigers.
The reserves were:
- Arunachal Pradesh: Kamlang, Namdapha and Pakke.
- Assam: Nameri.
- Chhattisgarh: Achanakmar, Indravati and Udanti–Sitanadi.
- Jharkhand: Palamau.
- Maharashtra: Sahyadri.
- Mizoram: Dampa.
- Odisha: Satkosia.
- Rajasthan: Mukundara Hills and Ramgarh Vishdhari.
- Telangana: Kawal.
- Uttar Pradesh: Ranipur.
- West Bengal: Buxa.
Important distinction: This is a combined warning category. It does not mean that all 16 reserves were tiger-free.
For example, Nameri, Pakke and Achanakmar were included because of their very small or vulnerable populations, rather than necessarily recording zero tigers.
Some reserves may also have gained tigers after 2022 through natural dispersal, translocation or successful breeding.
Part III: Why Do Tiger Reserves Become Tiger-Free?
Although individual reserves have different histories, several recurring conservation problems help explain why tigers disappear or fail to establish viable populations.
Six Principal Threats
1. Poaching and Illegal Hunting
Direct killing can eliminate tigers from small populations. Illegal hunting of deer, wild pigs and other herbivores also reduces the prey available to surviving tigers.
2. Declining Prey Populations
A forest may appear healthy but lack sufficient wild ungulates to support resident breeding tigers.
Restoring prey populations is therefore an essential requirement in reserves where food availability has become a limiting factor.
3. Broken Wildlife Corridors
Roads, railways, mining, agricultural expansion and settlements can interrupt the movement of tigers between forest landscapes.
Without functioning corridors, vacant habitats may remain unoccupied even when they contain suitable forest and sufficient prey.
4. Absence of Breeding Females
Male tigers can disperse over considerable distances and may occasionally enter reserves without resident populations.
However, recovery requires females to establish territories, reproduce and successfully raise cubs.
A reserve visited only by wandering males cannot develop a self-sustaining breeding population.
5. Human-Wildlife Conflict
Dispersing tigers may encounter livestock, farms and settlements while travelling between protected forests.
Livestock losses, dangerous encounters and retaliatory actions can undermine efforts to restore populations.
Effective conflict-response systems and support for neighbouring communities are essential components of tiger conservation.
6. Inadequate Monitoring and Management
Small populations require consistent protection, scientific monitoring and rapid responses to emerging threats.
Without reliable information on tiger movements, prey availability, mortality and breeding, conservation authorities may struggle to identify problems before a population disappears.
These are broad conservation threats. Their relative importance differs between reserves, and not every factor has been established as a cause in every individual reserve.
Why Simply Releasing Tigers Is Not the Answer
Reintroducing tigers can help restore a population, but only when the reasons for their earlier disappearance have been addressed.
Satkosia illustrates the difficulties that can arise when ecological, management and community-related challenges remain unresolved during a translocation programme.
Kawal presents a different problem. Research indicates that its prey base could support a substantial tiger population, but fragmented corridors and the limited arrival of breeding females have prevented a resident population from becoming established.
Dampa demonstrates how a reserve can remain without recorded tigers across successive national assessments.
These situations require different solutions.
A scientifically planned restoration programme should establish that:
- Sufficient prey is available.
- Protection against poaching is effective.
- Suitable habitat and water sources are secure.
- Breeding animals can survive and establish territories.
- Wildlife corridors are protected wherever necessary.
- Surrounding communities are prepared for renewed tiger presence.
- Long-term monitoring and conflict-response arrangements are in place.
Introducing tigers before these conditions are met could expose the animals and neighbouring communities to avoidable risks.
Part IV: What Should India Do?
Different Reserves Need Different Recovery Strategies
A national tiger recovery strategy must distinguish between reserves with different ecological conditions.
Reserves With No Tigers and Inadequate Prey
The immediate priorities should be habitat protection, recovery of wild herbivores and stronger anti-poaching measures.
Tiger introduction should be considered only after the habitat is capable of supporting the animals.
Reserves With Adequate Prey but No Breeding Population
Authorities should investigate why tigers are not establishing themselves.
Where fragmented corridors or a shortage of breeding females are responsible, restoration of landscape connectivity and carefully assessed assisted dispersal may be appropriate.
Kawal is an important example of this category.
Reserves With One or Very Few Tigers
The priority should be to protect existing animals, assess breeding potential and identify whether natural recolonisation or population supplementation is necessary.
Long-term recovery will depend on successful reproduction, cub survival and the establishment of a stable population.
A National Recovery Roadmap
The following measures can help guide reserve-specific recovery programmes:
- Establish the current population: Use recent camera-trap records, genetic evidence and field monitoring to determine whether resident tigers are present.
- Assess prey availability: Identify whether the forest supports sufficient wild herbivores.
- Strengthen protection: Address poaching, snaring and other direct threats.
- Restore habitat: Improve degraded forests, grasslands and water sources where scientifically justified.
- Protect corridors: Maintain movement routes between isolated reserves and established source populations.
- Involve local communities: Improve livestock protection, compensation and conflict-response systems.
- Evaluate reintroduction carefully: Consider translocation only after ecological, social and regulatory requirements have been addressed.
- Monitor long-term outcomes: Measure resident breeding females, cub survival and population persistence rather than relying solely on occasional sightings.
The objective should be to restore viable breeding populations in suitable landscapes, not simply to increase the number of reserves reporting an occasional tiger.
Conclusion: Tiger Conservation Must Reach the Reserves Left Behind
India’s tiger recovery is a major conservation achievement, but the national population total conceals substantial differences between individual reserves.
The 2022 assessment identified five tiger reserves with zero recorded tigers and a wider group with extremely small or vulnerable populations.
The reasons differ. Some reserves have experienced historical losses associated with poaching and declining prey. Others have become isolated from source populations or lack sufficient breeding animals.
Buxa and Palamau are among the reserves receiving renewed attention through population-restoration planning. Kawal demonstrates that even abundant prey cannot guarantee recovery when wildlife corridors fail to deliver breeding animals.
The central conservation challenge is not merely to increase India’s total tiger population. It is to restore viable breeding populations in suitable landscapes where tigers have disappeared or remain dangerously scarce.
Success must ultimately be measured through resident females, successful breeding, cub survival and long-term population persistence—not simply the occasional appearance of a tiger on a camera trap.
Sources and Editorial Note
Primary source: National Tiger Conservation Authority and Wildlife Institute of India, Status of Tigers, Co-predators and Prey in India, 2022.
Additional sources: Down To Earth; Deccan Herald, June 28, 2026; and peer-reviewed research on Kawal Tiger Reserve.
Editorial note: Population figures in this section are based on the 2022 national assessment. They should not be presented as verified reserve-level populations for September 2026. Subsequent changes require confirmation from the latest Forest Department and NTCA monitoring records.
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