India’s wild tiger population is less than 1,411, the figure often claimed, the Hindustan Times reported on Wednesday.

“It (the figure) is an exaggeration,” Environment and Forests Minister Jairam Ramesh said, while launching a handbook on wildlife law enforcement in India. “I don’t know from where the figure came. Probably, the number of tigers in the wild are much lower and are diminishing day by day.”

Many experts have doubts over the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NCTA) figure of 1,411.

“To me, there are not more than 1,000 to 1,100 tigers in the wild,” the report quoted P.K. Sen, former director of Project Tiger, as saying.

The Tiger Census report had estimated maximum of 1,650 and minimum of 1,150 tigers in 2007. It meant an average of 1,411 tigers. Since then, over 100 deaths have been reported.

The new tiger census that uses better methodology will be completed by October and by December 2010, the number of big cat would be out, the report said.