Who will save the Cat?

“Men when perfected, is the best of all animals, but when separated from law and justice, he is the WORST of all.”

These are very truly said words of Aristotle, and are enough to change a person’s mindset about animals. Humans believe they are the most superior of all animals. But who are we to judge? And if we are then we should take care of all the other beings on the planet. After all, with great position comes great responsibility. But what are we doing? Simply killing them for our selfish reasons.

Today tigers are amongst the most endangered species on the planet. Out of the 9 sub-species, now only 6 survive. A century ago, there were about 100,000 tigers present on the planet. But today, merely 3200 are present, due to massive illegal poaching. 3200 is a no. to worry about…isn’t it?

I recently visited the Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve and spoke to the ex-poachers and their kids. After speaking to them I realized how difficult their lives are and how &why they take up poaching as a profession. Most of them are uneducated, therefore they don’t understand their importance and the outcomes of their actions. But the better part is that their new generations, i.e. their sons and grandsons are strongly against it. They are educated and thus understand their importance. The government is also holding general awareness programs in these regions, to build awareness among the local people of these areas. I believe education plays a major role in this changing of mindsets.

But the question is- why are they hunted?

Killing big cats was a favourite sport among the ancient rulers of India and later, was very popular amongst the British colonizers. This dropped down the no. of tigers in India drastically. Now they are primarily killed to sell in the underground black markets. The bones are sold with the misconception that it has some medicinal value and the  skins are sold to foreign traders for Rs. 80,000 to Rs. 3 lakhs!  Just imagine if all this money was spent on children’s education!

As the human population is growing, we are further encroaching into tiger habitats. This is also increasing the no. of attacks on humans. Just imagine, if someone enters your house and brutally kills one of your family member…and sell their skin in the market…how would you feel? We are all God’s creation and each one of us is equal. Everyone.

Today, India has 53 tiger reserves. Ofcoarse its helping them in their survival. But it is not just for the sake of ‘survival’. Also, keeping them in places like zoos makes them lazy and hampers their ability to hunt. Today, there are more tigers in captivity than in their natural environment.

Don’t you think tigers also have emotions? Humans have emotions, so why can’t they? Its just that maybe they are not able to express….or we are not able to understand! So, it is time for us to take initiative and  do something, before they fully disappear. Its us who will save the cat.

                 WAKE UP THE TIGER INSIDE YOU AND SAVE THE RULER OF THE JUNGLE!