New Delhi: Union Minister of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change, Shri Bhupender Yadav released the report on the Status of Snow leopards in India during the National Board for Wildlife meeting held in New Delhi today.
The Snow Leopard Population Assessment in India (SPAI) Program is the first-ever scientific exercise that reports the Snow leopard population of 718 individuals in India.
The SPAI systematically covered over 70% of the potential snow leopard range in the country, involving forest & wildlife staff, researchers, volunteers, and contributions from knowledge partners.
Covering approximately 120,000km2 of crucial Snow leopard habitat across the trans-Himalayan region, including UTs of Ladakh and J & K, and states such as Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh, the SPAI exercise was conducted from 2019 to 2023 using a meticulous two-step framework.
During the SPAI exercise, total efforts included: 13,450 km of trails surveyed for recording Snow leopard signs, while camera traps were deployed at 1,971 locations for 180,000 trap nights. The Snow leopard occupancy was recorded in 93,392 km2, with an estimated presence in 100,841 km2. A total of 241 unique Snow leopards were photographed.
Based on data analysis, the estimated population in different states are as follows: Ladakh (477), Uttarakhand (124), Himachal Pradesh (51), Arunachal Pradesh (36), Sikkim (21), and Jammu and Kashmir (9).
Until recent years, the snow leopard range in India was undefined due to a lack of extensive nationwide assessments for this vulnerable species.
Before 2016, approximately one-third of the range (around ca. 100,347 km2) received minimal research attention, reduced to just 5% in pockets like Ladakh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand, and Himachal Pradesh.
Recent status surveys have significantly increased understanding, providing preliminary information for 80% of the range (about 79,745 km2), compared to 56% in 2016.
