Solution

The report by the Rights and Risks Analysis Group highlighted a significant increase in the displacement of Scheduled Tribes and other forest dwellers due to the expansion of Project Tiger. Before 2021, approximately 2,54,794 people were displaced from 50 tiger reserves, which averages to about 5,000 displacements per protected area. Since 2021, the average number of people to be displaced from six new or expanded tiger reserves has risen sharply to 48,333. This represents a staggering 967% increase over the average displacement numbers recorded before 2021. This dramatic rise underscores the escalating impact of conservation efforts on local tribal and forest-dwelling communities, reflecting a major shift in the scale and consequences of such environmental protection policies. This data is crucial for understanding the social costs associated with large-scale environmental projects like Project Tiger.