A statement issued by the family read, “It is with much sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved Valmik Thapar at dawn on the 31st of May 2025, after a brave and tough fight with cancer.”
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh recalled that during his tenure as environment minister, not a day went by when he didn’t speak with Thapar. “Today’s Ranthambore, particularly, is a testimony to his deep commitment and indefatigable zeal. He was uncommonly knowledgeable on a variety of issues relating to biodiversity and not a day passed during my ministerial tenure without our talking to each other — with me almost always at the receiving end. During my tenure as Chairman of the Standing Committee also, he was a constant source of many valuable suggestions and advice. We had arguments but it was always an education to listen to him, full of passion and concern,” Ramesh posted on X.
From primary healthcare for the community to dairy development with the aim of encouraging stall-fed cattle to discourage illegal grazing in the Ranthambore Tiger Reserve, to successfully rewilding barren and degraded tracts of land, his approach was ahead of his time.
He was also the proponent of the Ranthambhore School of Art and of bringing Dastkar, to set up a women’s co-operative to keep alive traditional craft. Thapar also inspired the setting up of other conservation organisations to whom he devolved many of the initiatives that he originally spearheaded.
“Thapar was no arm-chair conservationist, he spent as much time as possible in the field. Be it in the searing heat or on an icy cold winter morning, rain or shine, he would be ideating with community elders and officers managing India’s Tiger Reserves and National Parks to find solutions to complex, sensitive issues. Of course, he enjoyed his time in the jungle with his camera and binoculars, not just in the Indian wilderness but also in Africa. But what gave him the most pleasure was spending time with Tigers in Ranthambhore, where his lifelong passion was ignited,” members of the family said..
His work on countless government boards and committees over the decades — from the National Board for Wildlife to the Central Empowered Committee for Forests of the Supreme Court of India — took him across the length and breadth of the country.
His family recalled that Thapar did not mince his words, nor shy away from giving his suggestions and opinions without fear or favour, he spoke with the same amount of passion about wildlife and conservation to a Prime Minister or Chief Minister as he did to a Forest Guard in a far-flung chowki, treating them with equal respect.
His family, in a statement, said that Thapar was a bright guiding light not just for the family but the world of conservation.
