Bhubaneswar: In a first, college and school students will participate in the upcoming All India Tiger Estimation 2025-26 at Odisha’s Debrigarh Wildlife Sanctuary scheduled to begin in the second week of November.
A total of 46 students from Dunguri College, Kamgaon College and Lakhanpur High School are currently undergoing training for the national-level census. “The students are being trained in sampling techniques, data gathering, recognising herbivores and carnivores, and detecting indicators like pugmarks, footprints, scrape marks, scent markings, and calls,” said Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of the Hirakud Wildlife Division Anshu Pragyan Das.
The All India Tiger Census was last carried out in 2022.
Elaborating on the decision to engage students in the task, she said that it will help cultivate their curiosity and ensure a long-term connection with nature. “This is the first time we are bringing youth participation, especially students, into such an extensive exercise. Their enthusiasm, creativity and energy will add a fresh dimension to conservation efforts at Debrigarh,” she said.
Das further added that the sanctuary has been divided into 26 units and 80 frontline forest officials will join the students in the census, which will include sign surveys and camera trapping to assess the status of carnivores, prey density and habitat conditions.
A total of 107 camera traps have been deployed for the exercise.