New Delhi, July 27 (IANS) Mobile handset maker Nokia has joined hands with wildlife conservation organisation World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)-India, to support the tiger conservation initiatives in the country, the company announced Sunday. Both sides have agreed to work together towards increasing awareness about need for tiger conservation in the villages surrounding the tiger reserves.

The joint initiative would also identify alternative livelihood programmes for the villagers around national parks, with special focus on the Ranthambore National Park.

Nokia India vice-president and managing director D. Shivakumar said: “The tiger population in India has seen an alarming decrease due to shrinking forest cover, and increasing poaching. We have joined hands to spread awareness about this important cause.”

Ravi Singh, secretary general and CEO of WWF-India, said: “This is an important step in bringing corporate institutional support for conservation, significantly tiger conservation, in India.”