The term 'M-STrIPES' is sometimes seen in the news in the context of

Answer: (b) Maintenance of Tiger Reserves

M-STrIPES (Monitoring System for Tigers — Intensive Protection and Ecological Status) is the NTCA’s app-based patrolling and monitoring system for tiger reserves.

The idea

A forest guard on patrol carries a phone with GPS. The app records the route walked, animal signs, carcasses and any illegal activity. Managers can then see on a map which parts of the reserve are patrolled well and which are neglected.

Guard patrols with the app → Route and sightings are recorded with location → Data goes to a central system → Maps show gaps in patrolling and trends in wildlife → Managers send patrols where needed

Why the others are wrong

(c) India’s navigation system is NavIC.

The trap

“Stripes” is the tiger clue.

Also know

It was developed by the National Tiger Conservation Authority with the Wildlife Institute of India and has been used in the all-India tiger estimation, done every four years. The 2022 estimate was 3,682 tigers. Project Tiger began in 1973 with nine reserves.