Submit your Article

Multifaceted efforts have been made toward tiger conservation, and Nepal today boasts over 355 tigers in the wild. In 2010, this number was only a third of it—at 121. However, conservation of this umbrella species seems to have created new challenges in human-animal conflict management across the country’s national parks.

Tiger attacks on humans have more than tripled in the last 10-15 years and Nepal seems to be at a crossroads when it comes to managing human-animal balance. Efforts to control this conflict seem to have even challenged the country’s capacity to define development with nature in the balance. On May 14, I visited the Devnagar Tiger Rescue Center in Chitwan and came out with mixed feelings of the direction conservation was headed in Nepal.

The rescue center is primarily meant to keep and conserve ‘troublemaker tigers.’ At the gate, I was told that some 150-200 people have been visiting the center daily since its opening earlier around the Nepali new year. The plan is to reinvest the money raised from ticketing this conservation-tourism effort back into the operations of the rescue center.

All of this was good news, but when I actually went inside, my heart sank. The center seemed too small and cage-like. According to a report published in a daily on May 14, the center covers an area of around 4000 square feet. Separated into two rooms, with indoor and outdoor spaces, two male tigers are kept in this mini-enclosure. I spoke to some of the guides, who had brought in guests, mostly Indians and Nepalis, and one of them mentioned that those running the center ought to accommodate spaces for the tigers to hunt naturally so that when and if the tigers are considered rehabilitate-able into the wild, they can adapt. According to the Wild Tiger Health Project, tigers in rehabilitation should have an enclosure, which is ideally a large (> 0.5 hectare), natural area with good shade trees, plenty of vegetation providing cover, a varying terrain, a pool for bathing and a natural stream system to ensure a clean water supply.

However, I’m really not sure what a rescue center envisions for the rescued  tigers' future, if not rehabilitation into its natural habitat. There is plenty of space around the rescue center to build a larger enclosed nature-like habitat for tigers. I’m assuming it may lack budget, which is the main reason behind the establishment of a small enclosure.

I was also feeling hopeful that ‘conservation tourism’ could actually be quite a larger than life segment for Nepal's tourism industry. But it must be done correctly rather than conveniently. Imagine a tiger in a much larger ‘natural-looking’ space, not immediately visible, guests on binoculars searching, brochures in their pockets that introduce the tigers story and its journey, etc. 

 I must also acknowledge that the government has tried to manage human-animal conflict quite well because rescue centers are only a part of the larger puzzle to conserve and manage flora and fauna in Nepal. Fifty-nine people have died in tiger attacks across various national parks in Nepal since 2018, according to government sources. In 2021-22, tigers killed 21 people, whereas some 10 years ago (2012-13), five human casualties had occurred in the course of conflicts with tigers.

For comparative analysis, more people die because of mosquito bites than tiger attacks in Nepal. According to the Journal of Travel Medicine, mosquito-borne diseases killed more than 55 people in Nepal in 2022. But tigers, not surprisingly, seem to draw more attention, the feline has magnetic charisma, which we must understand and consider in our analysis of human-animal conflict management.

Most tiger attacks have been happening on the outer edges of jungles where weaker tigers roam. Human habitats, which not surprisingly are closing into jungle spaces, mostly witness these encounters. In Meghauli last year, a young mother not even in her 20s died in a tiger attack while foraging the buffer area early in the morning to pluck wild spinach (‘niuro saag’).

Soon after the news of the attack/death spread, locals rioted and demanded park authorities to take the tiger into captivity and relocate the ‘human-eater’. Locals refused to take the body of the young woman out of the jungle until authorities took the tiger away. Local politicians even gain popularity for getting tigers caught and relocated, making tiger attacks a political affair.

Therefore, let’s understand that it is still not too late to envision better rescue and rehabilitation centers. We should  look at the Devnagar rescue center as an example of what is in progress to not only manage human-animal conflict but also an effort to attract quality tourism into a new sphere of “conservation-wildlife tourism” in Nepal. Hopefully, visitors who come to the center will not only be first and last time visitors but wish to be a part of the animals rescue and rehabilitation journey. Hopefully more visitors come for educational purposes and to be a part of quality conservation efforts in Nepal.

It should even be possible to turn the rescue of tigers into a movement. Well-documented visuals and stories through dedicated national broadcasts for conservation tourism could enrich Nepal’s ongoing engagement with tigers. People from across the world could play a part in raising awareness and money to support our government in its efforts to manage human-animal conflict. As Nepal tries to navigate into quality and modern conservation efforts, possibilities are endless, if the right course is taken.

Better shelters and management will surely contribute to a positive conservation tourism sector and attract not only visitors for wildlife tourism (165,000 visitors were recorded at the Chitwan National Park last year), but also for quality wildlife conservation tourism across Nepal's several national parks and conservation areas. However, for the time being, I am left wondering as to what the future holds for the two tigers I saw.

Nepal has a lot of untapped investment potential especially in the areas of infrastructure development, renewable energy, green hydrogen, hydropower, tourism, agri-business, and information and communication technology. Manufacturing is another area where Nepal could attract projects.

KPMG in India has a track record of supporting government agencies on investment promotion programs, business reforms and investment summits. We will be happy to advise the Government of Nepal on the Nepal Investment Summit. For the success of the investment summit, along with inter-ministerial collaboration, laying the platform with a stronger policy environment, effective promotion and targeting investors across key sectors, it will be essential to showcase investable projects that are ready to execute.

The workshop on ‘Unlocking Nepal’s Investment Potential’ organized by KPMG in India, along with the Investment Board Nepal (IBN) in Kathmandu was a precursor to the proposed summit in April. The focus was on promoting private investments, particularly Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), to unlock the country's full potential. The speakers elaborated on potential strategies which could be adopted to reduce compliance burden for investor fraternity and simplify the business processes for obtaining requisite clearances and approvals by investors. Drawing from its extensive experience, KPMG shared success stories from other similar economies and drew parallels to offer indicative actionable recommendations for Nepal. Nepal is on the cusp of transformation, and the workshop concluded with a commitment to enhance the country’s investment climate through legal, procedural, and regulatory reforms.

To foster economic expansion and enhance investment potential in Nepal, a comprehensive strategy should focus on strengthening the policy environment, infrastructure development, regulatory reforms, ensuring ease of doing business, and targeted sector-specific investment promotion. Strengthening key sectors like tourism, technology, renewable energy, green hydrogen, and manufacturing can also play a pivotal role in attracting investors and fostering sustainable economic growth. Additionally, building a business-friendly environment, easing process friction, and encouraging innovation will further contribute to creating an attractive investment climate in Nepal.

There are several areas where India could increase investment in Nepal, particularly in areas of synergies and leveraging learnings from each other in ease of doing business (EODB), managing large programs, and infrastructural development through public-private partnerships (PPPs). By fostering collaboration in key sectors such as renewable energy, green hydrogen, manufacturing, digital public infrastructure, technology centers, agriculture, and tourism infrastructure, services, both nations could drive mutual growth and development. Several factors could contribute to the gap between promised investments and actual outcomes. Identifying and addressing these issues, improving transparency, and ensuring a stable investment climate could help bridge this gap.

The author is CEO of KPMG, India 

Nepal with its diverse geographical and climatic variation can offer habitat for a wide range of migratory birds. Around 212 species of migratory birds visit and spend nearly six months in the different parts of Nepal. Birds like waterfowl, eagles, storks, cranes and other species make this land a temporary habitat during different weather conditions.

Around 150 birds from Russia, Europe, Mongolia and other northern countries migrate to Nepal during winter seasons to avoid the harshest cold. They arrive in Nepal flying thousands of kilometers over the mountains and seas and return following the same route in summer. During this journey, they have to go through difficult conditions like cold weather, harsh wind, predators and also humans, our polluting activities and environmental degradation. Similarly, in search of more pleasant temperatures and breeding sites, around 62 species of summer migratory birds arrive in Nepal from Sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, and South India.

Migratory birds use different habitats like wetlands around ponds, lakes and rivers, farmlands, grasslands and forests. These habitats are mostly used by the winter visitors and being the destination for winter birds, not only do they provide warmer temperatures but also a habitat with an abundance of food sources. They prefer mostly insects, small fishes, plants, seeds and other organisms.

Insects are abundant in green areas with higher forest biomass and are a good source of protein for migratory birds as well as others for survival and continuation of lineage. Understanding the type of insects they prefer helps in conserving the birds, insects and their habitat. 

Human activities like habitat fragmentation, encroachment, dumping of sewage, using chemical fertilizers, pesticides and insecticides for better crop production decrease the insect population. Birds store fat in their body while starting their journey and ample availability of the food species, such as insects, are vital for this accumulation process. This accumulated fat provides energy while flying for long hours. On the contrary, in the present scenario of decreasing habitat and foraging areas, due to human encroachment and pollution there are threats to declination in the population of insects and birds. Anthropogenic activity in light pollution in urban areas also is a major reason for the decline of insects as they are nocturnal and are easy to trace by predators.

Relationship between birds and insects

Bird migration is one of the crucial components of bird biology. Migration to distant land is in search of suitable temperature, breeding and foraging habitat. In the course of migration and breeding for birds, insects are the main source of diet providing necessary nutrients in non-stop flight as well as safety from predators. There is a complex relationship between birds and insects. It is important that the timing of bird migration and abundance availability of preferred insects coincide. If the birds arrive early or late or when insects are less in number, birds may starve but if birds arrive when the insect numbers are high then the birds can get plenty of nutrients. There is an evolutionary relationship between birds and insects. Birds and insects evolve in response to each other. Birds have specialized beaks in course feeding behavior with time. This evolved specialized beak allows them to catch insects. On the other hand, insects themselves have defensive abilities like camouflage and toxin-producing capacity to protect from predatory birds. Birds are effective pest control as they consume most of the insects preventing the overpopulation of insects. Numbers of certain insect species damage agriculture crops and other plants mis balancing the ecosystem. Sometimes birds act as a vector in transferring certain infectious diseases. Hence it is better to understand the food behavior of those migratory birds.

What can we do?

Being the migratory birds, coordination between countries should be encouraged, protecting the habitats underneath the path of the migration route, controlling illegal hunting, using alternatives of pesticides to minimize its effects on the environment, educating people about the significance of birds and insects, and cleaning up urban gardens. Moreover, restoring the habitats by creating insect’s insect-friendly gardens or urban forests, restoration of grasslands, and wetlands, and planting insect-friendly vegetation can increase insect diversity and population. Not only insects are a good source of nutrients for birds but also help in pollinating crops.

In addition, supporting organic farming and agroforestry, prioritizing diverse crops or plants over monoculture, and using fewer toxic pesticides and insecticides also help in increasing insect numbers. Likewise, maintaining dead leaves on the ground which is used as a habitat, breeding and feeding ground by insects is also a positive marker. Doing so helps in the nutrient cycle. Removing invasive plants and planting native plants is good for the local ecosystem and can be consumed by local insects thus increasing the number. Insect-favoring landscaping gardens and bird-friendly designs are the next better steps where they can find a healthy environment to survive and breed for healthy generations.

For the conservation of migratory species, it is essential to ensure that they are protected in both the habitat and multilateral environmental agreements are vital in that regard. Convention on Migratory Species (CMS), is an important multilateral agreement to protect the migratory species. However, Nepal has only signed the CMS for the birds of prey. Nepal needs to sign and rectify the convention and join the global movement to protect additional migratory species. 

Likewise, public awareness is key for educating bird-insect relationships. World Migratory Bird Day is celebrated twice every year in May and October. This year, World Migratory Bird Day will be celebrated on May 11 and Oct 12, aligning with the cyclical nature of bird migration in different hemispheres. With the slogan of Protect insects, protect birds. Some Insects can be petrifying to look at but it is the source of food for 55 percent of world birds. So, we need to save insects and appreciate them for their helpful qualities to protect many bird species, including migratory birds.

The Department of Hydrology and Meteorology has predicted the possibility of heavy rainfall in the South Asian region, including Nepal, this monsoon. According to the department, Kaski, Syangja, Lamjung and southern parts of Manang and Mustang are likely to receive heavy rains this year.

Heavy rainfall has also been forecast for the eastern and northern regions of Gulmi, and the western and northern regions of Gorkha. Furthermore, Saptari, major parts of Siraha, southern regions of Dhanusha, Sarlahi, and Mahottari, the western region of Sunsari, and the southern region of Udayapur are also expected to experience heavy monsoon rains.

However, it seems the government has not made adequate preparations to tackle potential monsoon hazards. As temperatures rise and air becomes warmer, we are witnessing more intense downpours, increasing the risks of floods and landslides. In recent years, Nepal has witnessed two major flood events—the Melamchi flood and the Kagbeni, Mustang flood—caused by heavy rainfall over a short period.

The government should make necessary preparations to address climate-related hazards. There is a designated agency, the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Authority (NDRRMA) under the Ministry of Home Affairs, responsible for addressing natural disasters. However, it has yet to formulate concrete plans to mitigate risks even though monsoon is at our doorsteps. According to NDRRMA, floods have claimed 876 lives, with an additional 563 reported missing and 209 injured over the past 12 years. At the same time, landslides have resulted in 1,483 fatalities, with 347 people still missing and 1,224 others injured. The monetary damage caused by monsoon disasters over the past 12 years is estimated at
Rs 20bn.   

Despite such an alarming scenario, the government of Nepal seems least bothered about making adequate preparations for mitigating risks. There is a lack of coordination among the state's security agencies, such as the Nepali Army, Nepal Police and the Armed Police Force. Additionally, there is no proper mechanism for effective coordination among the federal, provincial and local governments. Without further ado, the government should prioritize preparations to safeguard people's lives and properties from monsoon hazards.