kathmandu, Sept. 15: Fear of wildlife has increased among residents living in the buffer zone of Banke National Park as the tiger population in the park has more than doubled.
According to the National Tiger Survey 2026, the number of tigers in Banke has increased from 25 in 2022 to 51 this year.
Banke National Park said the tiger population was estimated by dividing the park and surrounding forest areas into different blocks for the survey.
Chief Conservation Officer Birendra Kandel said Banke had only four tigers in 2013, with the number rising to 21 in 2018 and 25 in 2022 before reaching 51 this year.
Although the rise in the tiger population is considered a significant achievement from a conservation perspective, local residents say it has also increased the risk of human-wildlife conflict in settlements surrounding the park.
Residents have become increasingly fearful as tigers and other wild animals continue to enter settlements, attack people and kill livestock.
Tapta Poudel, chairperson of Rapti Sonari Rural Municipality, said the doubling of the tiger population was a positive development for conservation but that the safety of local residents should receive equal priority. According to him, three people were killed in tiger attacks in Banke during the last fiscal year 2025/26.
“The rise in the tiger population is a conservation success, but tigers continue to enter settlements. As there are no long-term measures to ensure people’s safety, news of the growing tiger population has also increased anxiety among residents of the buffer zone,” he said.
Although local, provincial and federal governments have been implementing various programmes to minimise human-wildlife conflict, these initiatives appear to focus more on immediate relief and management than on long-term prevention.
The federal government provides Rs. 1 million in compensation to the families of people killed in wildlife attacks.
According to the Lumbini Province Ministry of Forests, Rs. 12.438 million was spent on human-wildlife conflict management in fiscal year 2024/25. Around Rs. 20 million has been allocated for the purpose in the current fiscal year.
Yam Bahadur Khadka, ward chairperson of Rapti Sonari-1, said local residents face increased risks because their daily lives remain closely linked to the forest.
