The one-man army who saved the tiger — with love and awe

CONSERVATIONIST AND TIGER chronicler Valmik Thapar passed away early this morning after a brave and tough fight with cancer at his Kautilya Marg residence in New Delhi. He was diagnosed with cancer in his digestive tract.

- JAY MAZOOMDAAR New Delhi, May 31

Considered one of the world's foremost authorities on tigers, Thapar inspired generations to rally for the cause of wildlife conservation. A veritable one-man army, he authored over two dozen books mostly on big cats, presented several wildlife documentaries, including the seminal BBC series Land of the Tiger (1997), and remained the loudest and most articulate voice for conservation in India since the 1990s.

With no formal training in wildlife biology or conservation, Thapar developed a deep understanding of tiger behaviour, as he put it, by watching wild tigers in Ranthambhore over five decades. In 1976, it was a chance encounter with Fateh Singh Rathore, then director of Ranthambhore tiger reserve, that had him hooked for life.

Both outspoken and often contrarian, Rathore and Thapar formed an indefatigable partnership that influenced and, often, shaped India's conservation efforts and policies.

Thapar served in multiple apex bodies of the government, including the National Board for Wildlife and the Central Empowered Committee of the Supreme Court. He was also a member of the Tiger Task Force set up to prescribe reforms in the aftermath of the disappearance of tigers from Rajasthan's Sariska in 2005.

That was also the year I started learning the mercurial ways of India's Tigerman. Thapar was warmly supportive of my work in