India's Asiatic lion conservation is a success story but remains at extinction risk from single-population concentration. Discuss, with reference to the Supreme Court's 2013 translocation order.

Q. India's Asiatic lion conservation is a success story but remains at extinction risk from single-population concentration. Discuss, with reference to the Supreme Court's 2013 translocation order. (15 marks, 250-350 words)

The Asiatic lion (Panthera leo persica), reduced to a few dozen animals in the early 20th century, today numbers 891 — up 32% from 674 in 2020 [1]. Yet every wild individual survives in one contiguous Saurashtra landscape, making the recovery numerically impressive but geographically fragile.

The success story

• Population recovery: 674 (2020) to 891 (2025), with range expansion across roughly 35,000 sq km spanning 11 districts of Saurashtra [1][2].
• Dedicated funding: the Asiatic Lion Conservation Project committed Rs 97.85 crore of central support over three years for disease control, veterinary care and habitat work [3].
• Community coexistence: local participation and Maldhari tolerance allow over half the lions to persist in non-forest revenue and coastal areas [1][2].

The persisting risk

• Single-population concentration: one epidemic, forest fire or cyclone in Gir could erase the entire wild gene pool — the classic conservation-biology argument against a single locality.
• Genetic bottleneck: descent from a handful of founders leaves low diversity and inbreeding vulnerability.
• Human-wildlife interface: expansion into revenue lands raises road, well and railway mortality risks.

The Supreme Court's 2013 order

In Centre for Environmental Law, WWF-I v. Union of India (15 April 2013), the Court applied a "best interest of the species" standard, held that a lion is not the property of any one State, and directed translocation of lions from Gir to Kuno-Palpur, Madhya Pradesh within six months [4]. Over a decade later it stands unimplemented; Kuno instead hosts translocated cheetahs, while natural dispersal into Barda Wildlife Sanctuary (17 lions) is projected as a second home [2]. Barda, being contiguous Gujarat habitat, does not deliver the geographic separation the order sought.

Conservation success must be measured by resilience, not headcount alone. Honouring the 2013 directive through a phased, scientifically monitored second population — alongside Project Lion's landscape approach and Barda's consolidation — would secure the species and affirm cooperative federalism in wildlife governance.

(~325 words)

Sources: 1. PIB — Parliament Question: Population of Asiatic Lions in Gir Forests — 674 (2020) to 891 (2025); spread into non-forest areas 2. PIB — Gujarat Celebrates World Lion Day 2025 — 35,000 sq km/11 districts spread; Barda Wildlife Sanctuary as emerging second home 3. PIB — Asiatic Lion Conservation Project, Rs 97.85 crore central contribution over 3 years — dedicated project funding and scope 4. Supreme Court of India — Centre for Environmental Law, WWF-I v. Union of India, 15 April 2013 — best-interest-of-species standard; Gir-to-Kuno translocation directive