UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Union Environment Minister launches Inception Workshop for 6th Cycle of Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Tiger Reserves in India; Technical Manual for MEE-TR 2026 released
Q1. Consider the following statements comparing the Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Tiger Reserves (MEE-TR) with other tiger-related assessment exercises in India:
1. MEE-TR assesses the adequacy of management planning, resources, processes and outcomes of a reserve, whereas the All India Tiger Estimation measures the abundance of tigers and their prey.
2. MEE-TR is conducted by the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, while the All India Tiger Estimation is conducted by the Wildlife Institute of India.
3. Like MEE-TR, Conservation Assured | Tiger Standards (CA|TS) also appraises management standards of tiger reserves, but CA|TS is an international accreditation system and 23 Indian reserves have been accredited under it.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- MEE-TR assesses the adequacy of management planning, resources, processes and outcomes of a reserve, whereas the All India Tiger Estimation measures the abundance of tigers and their prey.
- MEE-TR is conducted by the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, while the All India Tiger Estimation is conducted by the Wildlife Institute of India.
- Like MEE-TR, Conservation Assured | Tiger Standards (CA|TS) also appraises management standards of tiger reserves, but CA|TS is an international accreditation system and 23 Indian reserves have been accredited under it.
- A. 1 and 2 only
- B. 2 and 3 only
- C. 1 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q2. Which one of the following correctly states the authority under which the Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Tiger Reserves is carried out in India?
- A. It is mandated exclusively by the IUCN, and every member state is obliged to submit its results to the World Commission on Protected Areas
- B. It is conducted by the National Tiger Conservation Authority jointly with the Wildlife Institute of India, under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
- C. It is conducted by the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, as a statutory duty imposed on it by Section 38V of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972
- D. It is carried out solely by the Global Tiger Forum, and its findings are binding on all tiger range countries that host wild tiger populations
Q3. Consider the following statements regarding the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) framework for assessing management effectiveness and the tools built on it:
1. The WCPA framework is not itself an assessment methodology; it is a framework on which specific assessment systems and tools are developed.
2. The Management Effectiveness Tracking Tool (METT) is aligned to the WCPA framework, and India's MEE of tiger reserves is likewise an adaptation of that framework.
3. In the WCPA framework, 'outputs' denote the extent to which the protected area's values have been conserved, while 'outcomes' denote the goods and services delivered as set out in the management plan.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- The WCPA framework is not itself an assessment methodology; it is a framework on which specific assessment systems and tools are developed.
- The Management Effectiveness Tracking Tool (METT) is aligned to the WCPA framework, and India's MEE of tiger reserves is likewise an adaptation of that framework.
- In the WCPA framework, 'outputs' denote the extent to which the protected area's values have been conserved, while 'outcomes' denote the goods and services delivered as set out in the management plan.
- A. 1 and 2 only
- B. 1 and 3 only
- C. 2 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q4. The adaptation of the IUCN-WCPA framework into the criteria and indicators used for evaluating India's tiger reserves is carried out by the National Tiger Conservation Authority along with which one of the following institutions?
- A. Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education, an autonomous body of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
- B. Forest Survey of India, the organisation of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change that assesses forest cover
- C. Wildlife Institute of India, an autonomous institute of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
- D. Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy, the in-service training institution for the Indian Forest Service
Q5. In the most recently completed cycle of the Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Tiger Reserves (the 2022 cycle), which one of the following tiger reserves recorded the highest overall score?
- A. Satpura Tiger Reserve
- B. Kanha Tiger Reserve
- C. Periyar Tiger Reserve
- D. Bandipur Tiger Reserve
Q6. Consider the following pairs of MEE cycle and the number of tiger reserves covered in that cycle:
1. 2006 cycle — 28 tiger reserves
2. 2010 cycle — 39 tiger reserves
3. 2014 cycle — 50 tiger reserves
4. 2022 cycle — 51 tiger reserves
Which of the above is/are correctly identified?
- 2006 cycle — 28 tiger reserves
- 2010 cycle — 39 tiger reserves
- 2014 cycle — 50 tiger reserves
- 2022 cycle — 51 tiger reserves
- A. 1 and 3
- B. 2 and 4
- C. 1, 2 and 4
- D. 3 and 4 only
Q7. Consider the following statements about the sixth cycle of the Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Tiger Reserves (MEE-TR 2026) as compared with the preceding cycle:
1. The sixth cycle replaces independent multidisciplinary evaluation teams with self-assessment questionnaires filled in by the reserve managements themselves.
2. The sixth cycle covers all 58 tiger reserves, as against 51 reserves evaluated in the 2022 cycle.
3. Solid Waste Management is introduced in the sixth cycle as a separate evaluation criterion, covering waste from forest chowkis and tourism activities and biomedical waste from wildlife rescue centres.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- The sixth cycle replaces independent multidisciplinary evaluation teams with self-assessment questionnaires filled in by the reserve managements themselves.
- The sixth cycle covers all 58 tiger reserves, as against 51 reserves evaluated in the 2022 cycle.
- Solid Waste Management is introduced in the sixth cycle as a separate evaluation criterion, covering waste from forest chowkis and tourism activities and biomedical waste from wildlife rescue centres.
- A. 1 and 2 only
- B. 1 and 3 only
- C. 2 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q8. Which one of the following most precisely describes the National Tiger Conservation Authority?
- A. An autonomous registered society under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, whose membership consists entirely of serving forest officers of the tiger range States
- B. A statutory authority constituted under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 as amended in 2006, chaired by the Union Minister in charge of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
- C. A constitutional body established under Article 48A of the Constitution, all of whose directions are binding on every State legislature in matters of wildlife
- D. An executive body set up by a Cabinet resolution of 1973 along with Project Tiger, headed permanently by the Director General of Forests and Special Secretary
Q9. Consider the following statements about Project Tiger and the legal provisions governing tiger reserves:
1. Project Tiger was launched in 1973 as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, initially covering nine tiger reserves.
2. Tiger reserves are notified by the Central Government, and the core or critical tiger habitat is declared by the National Tiger Conservation Authority independently of the State Government concerned.
3. The core or critical tiger habitat and the buffer or peripheral area of a tiger reserve are dealt with under Section 38V of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.
4. India presently has 58 tiger reserves.
Which of the above is/are NOT correct?
- Project Tiger was launched in 1973 as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, initially covering nine tiger reserves.
- Tiger reserves are notified by the Central Government, and the core or critical tiger habitat is declared by the National Tiger Conservation Authority independently of the State Government concerned.
- The core or critical tiger habitat and the buffer or peripheral area of a tiger reserve are dealt with under Section 38V of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.
- India presently has 58 tiger reserves.
- A. 1 and 3
- B. 2 only
- C. 2 and 4
- D. 3 and 4
Q10. India leads the International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) as the host of its headquarters and Secretariat. Which one of the following statements about the IBCA is correct?
- A. Since January 2025 it functions as a full-fledged treaty-based inter-governmental organisation and international legal entity, and its mandate covers seven big cat species
- B. It is a specialised agency of the United Nations Environment Programme, and membership of it is obligatory for every country that has wild tiger populations
- C. It entirely replaced the Global Tiger Forum, which was wound up once the Global Tiger Recovery Programme adopted at St Petersburg came to an end
- D. It is the body that conducts the All India Tiger Estimation, and the population figures it publishes are binding on every State forest department
Q11. The relocation package of Rs 15 lakh per family for voluntary relocation of families from the core areas of tiger reserves is operationalised under which one of the following arrangements?
- A. Guidelines of the National Board for Wild Life, funded from the Compensatory Afforestation Fund under the CAMPA Act
- B. Guidelines of the National Tiger Conservation Authority, funded under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme Project Tiger of the MoEFCC
- C. Guidelines of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, funded under the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006
- D. Guidelines of the Wildlife Institute of India, funded under the Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats scheme of the MoEFCC