National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC) on Tuesday signed an agreement with Zoological Society of London (ZSL) to launch awareness raising activities in national parks and wildlife reserves in Tarai region, stretched along the Nepal-India border. 

Concerned over the increased poaching of tiger in major habitats in the country, particularly in the West Nepal in the recent months, the national and international organisations working in wildlife conservation have agreed to organise activities focusing on raising awareness about tiger conservation in Bardia National Park, Banke National Park, Parsa Wildlife Reserve, Shuklaphanta Wildlife Reserve and buffer-zone forest areas. 

The agreement signed between Govinda Parajuli, member secretary at the NTNC and Hem Sagar Baral, national coordinator of ZSL in Nepal, focuses on conducting camera trapping to study the status of tiger and their prey species, providing training to increase the capacity of government authorities working in conservation, improving the effectiveness of security network, setting up new security posts and support in patrolling inside the protected areas. 

The three-year project with an estimated cost of Rs 95.23 million will be implemented with the involvement of the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Reserve, ZSL and local communities, according to the agreement. It will also work to enhance the capacity of community-based units in various districts to combat poaching and illegal wildlife trade. The 13 tiger range countries, including Nepal, in 2010 pledged to double the existing wild tiger populations by 2022. Nepal is home to 198 wild tigers, as per the 2013 census.