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The Indian peninsula is a
continent in itself, whose geographical diversity has encouraged the
flourishing of a whole range of wildlife with over 350 species of
mammals and 1200 species of birds in the country. While there is an
overlap in the habitats of many species, each region has something
special to offer the hangul is restricted to the valley of Kashmir
in northern India, the rhino is found in North-East states of India
and pockets along the Brahmaputra river area, the black langur in the
western ghats, and western India is the home of the last remaining
Asiatic Lions.
Two of India’s most impressive animals, the Bengal/Indian Tiger and
the Asiatic Elephant are found in most regions, The tiger originated
in Central Asia and migrated over the great Himalayas to the dense
tropical forests, adapting itself well to the plains.
A herd of elephants in the wild is a breathtaking sight. These huge
mammals are respected by all animals, including the Tiger. Widely
distributed throughout India, the Indian Elephant is slightly smaller
than its African counterpart. Generally, only the males have tusks.
Today, most of India’s wildlife finds refuge in over two hundred
sanctuaries and parks around the country. The following section gives
a brief description of some of the more important of these. The
accommodation often needs to be booked in advance, either by direct
application to the hotel, rest house etc. concerned, or through the
local State TDC or the controlling authority of the respective park.
Brochures giving further information may be obtained from Government
of India Tourist Offices. |
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WILDLIFE SANCTUARIES AND
NATIONAL PARKS |
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NORTHERN INDIA
Dachigam
Wildlife Sanctuary (Kashmir).
Broad valley; mountain slopes; rare hangul deer, black and brown bear,
leopard; heronry. Airport: Srinagar 22km. Railhead: Jammu Tawi 311km.
Season: June - July. Accommodation: Srinagar: Houseboats on Dal and
Nagin Lakes.
Govind Sagar
Bird Sanctuary (Himachal
Pradesh). Bird Sanctuary with crane, duck, goose, teal.
Airport: Chandigarh 135km. Railhead: Nangal 13km. Accommodation:
available at Bhakra.
Corbett
National Park (Uttar
Pradesh). Himalayan foothills near Dhikala; Sal forest
and plains; tiger, elephant; leopard and rich bird life. Excellent
fishing in Ramganga river. Airport: Pantnagar 115 km. Railhead:
Ramnagar 51km. Season: November-May. Accommodation: Within the Park.
Dudhwa
National Park: (Uttar
Pradesh). Nepal border; tiger, sloth bear and panther.
Airport: Lucknow 251km. Railhead: Dudhwa 4kms. Season: November-May.
Accommodation: Within the Park. November - May. Accommodation: Within
the Park: Sawai Madhopur.
Flower Valley
National Park (Uttar
Pradesh). When in bloom this "roof garden" at 3,500
metres is a glorious blaze of colour. Location: Badrinath 44km.
Railhead: Rishikesh 280km. Season: June-July.
Sariska
National Park (Rajasthan).
About 200km from Delhi. Forest and open plains: sambar (largest Indian
deer), cheetal (spotted deer), nilgai (Indian antelope), blackbuck,
leopard, tiger; good night viewing. Airport: Jaipur 160km. Railhead:
Alwar 35km (bus connections). Season: February-June. Accommodation:
Within the Park.
Ranthambhor (Sawai Madhopur- Rajasthan). Hill forest,
plains and lakes; simbar, chinkara (Indian gazelle), tiger, sloth
bear, crocodiles and migratory water birds. Location: Railhead: Sawai
Madhopur 11km. Airport: Jaipur 162km. Season :
Bandhavgarh
National Park (Madhya
Pradesh). Situated in the Vindhya Mountains, this park
has a wide variety of wildlife including panther, sambar and gaur.
Airport: Jabalpur 166km. Railhead: Umaria 34km. Accommodation: Forest
Lodge in the park.
Bharatpur National Park (Keoladeo Ghana Bird Sanctuary) (Rajasthan).
India’s most outstanding bird sanctuary; many indigenous water birds;
huge migration from Siberia and China; crane, geese, stork, heron,
snake bird, etc. Airport: Agra 52km Railhead: Bharatpur 5km. Road:
Jaipur 176km, Delhi 177km. Season: September - February.
Accommodation: Within the Sanctuary.
Kanha
National Park (Madhya
Pradesh). Sal forest and grassland; only home of
barasingha (swamp deer), tiger, cheetal, gaur (Indian bison), monkey.
Airport: Nagpur 270km. Railhead: Jabalpur 170km. Season: November -
March. Accommodation: Within the Park; Kanha and Kisli.
Shivpuri
National Park (Madhya
Pradesh). Open forest and lake; chinkara, chowsingha
(four-horned antelope), nilgai, tiger, leopard, water birds. Airport:
Gwalior 120km. Railhead: Jhansi 95km. Season: February-May.
Accommodation: Forest Rest House, Motel.
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WILDLIFE SANCTUARIES AND
NATIONAL PARKS |
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EASTERN INDIA
Kaziranga National Park (Assam).
Elephant grass and swamps; one horned Indian rhinoceros, water
buffalo, tiger, leopard, elephant, deer, rich bird life. Elephant
transport available within the park. Airports: Jorhat 96km, Guwahati
217km. Railhead: Furkating 78km. Season: February-May. Accommodation:
Within the Park.
Manas Wildlife Sanctuary (Assam).
On the Bhutan border, rain forest and grassland and river banks;
rhino, water buffalo, tiger, elephant, golden langur, water birds;
fishing permitted. Airport: Gauhati 176km. Railhead: Barpeta 40km.
Season: January-March. Accommodation: Within the sanctuary.
Palamau Tiger Reserve (Bihar).
Rolling, forested hills; tiger, leopard, elephant, sambar, jungle cat,
rhesus macaque (monkey), occasionally wolf. Airport: Ranchi 155km.
Railhead: Daltenganj 19km. Season: February-March. Accommodation: At
Betla.
Hazaribagh National Park (Bihar).
Sal forested hills; sambar, nilgai, cheetal, tiger, leopard,
occasionally muntjac (lager barking deer). Airport: Ranchi 100km.
Railhead: Hazaribagh 67km. Season: February-March. Accommodation:
Within the Park.
Sunderbans Tiger Reserve (West Bengal).
Mangrove forests; tiger, fishing cat, deer, crocodile, dolphin, rich
bird life, Transport: access and travel by chartered boat. Airport:
Calcutta 48km. Season: February - March. Accommodation: None available
in or near the sanctuary.
Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary (West Bengal).
Tropical forest and grassland; rhino, elephant, rich bird life.
Airport: Bagdogra 155km, Railhead: Madari Hat l 1 km. Season: March -
May. Accommodation: Rest House at Jaldapara.
Similipal Tiger Reserve (Orissa)
Immense Sal forest; tiger, elephant, leopard, sambar, cheetal, muntjac
and chevrotain. Airport: Bhubaneshwar 310km. Railhead: Baripada 50km.
Season: November- June. Accommodation: Several Tourist Rest Houses in
the vicinity. |
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WILDLIFE SANCTUARIES AND
NATIONAL PARKS |
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SOUTHERN INDIA
Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary (Kerala).
Large artifical lake; elephant, gaur, wild dog, black langur, otters,
tortoises, rich bird life including hornbill and fishing owl. Viewing
by boat. Airports: Madurai 160km, Cochin 208km, Trivandrum 258km.
Railheads: Madurai, Kottayam 110kms, Bodinayakanur 67kms.
Accommodation: Choice of several nearby hotels.
Vedanthangal Water Birds
Sanctuary (Tamil
Nadu).
One of the most spectacular breeding grounds in India. Cormorants,
herons, storks, pelicans, grebes and many others. Airport: Madras
85km. Railhead: Chingleput 28km. Season: October-March. Accommodation:
Forest Resthouse.
Point Calimere Bird Sanctuary (Tamil
Nadu).
Particularly noted for its flamingos, also for herons, teals, curlews
and plovers and black buck and wild pig. Airport: Tiruchchirapalli
200km. Railhead: Point Calimere 0.5km. Season: November-January.
Accommodation: Forest Resthouse.
Pulicat Bird Sanctuary (Andhra
Pradesh).
Flamingos, grey pelicans, herons, terns. Airport A Railhead: Madras
60km. Accommodation: Available at Nellore.
Dandeli National Park (Karnataka).
Park with bison, panther, tiger and sambar. Easily accessible from Goa.
Airport: Belgaum 142km. Railhead: Alnaver 20km. Accommodation:
Resthouse at Kulgi Forest and Mandurli, and River View Bungalow at
Dandeli.
Jawahar National Park (This includes Bandipur and Nagarhole
National Parks (Karnataka),
and the Wildlife Sanctuaries of Mudumalai (Tamil
Nadu) and Wayanad (Kerala).
Extensive mixed forest; largest elephant population in India, leopard,
gaur, sambar, muntjac, giant squirrel. Birds include racquet-tailed
drongo, trogon & barbet.
Bandipur (Karnataka) :
Airport: Bangalore 190km. Railhead: Mysore 65km. Approachable from
Coimbatore and Ootacamund. Accommodation: Within the Park.
Mudumalai (Tamil
Nadu) :
Location: Airport: Coimbatore 16km. Railhead: Ootacamund 68km.
Nagarhole (Karnataka) :
Airport: Bangalore, Railhead: Mysore. Accommodation: 2 Traveller’s
Bungalows.
Wayanad (Kerala) :
Airport: Cochin 300km. Railhead: Calicut l l 1 km. Accommodation:
Forest Rest House. |
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WILDLIFE SANCTUARIES AND
NATIONAL PARKS |
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WESTERN INDIA
Wildlife Sanctuaries
Holiday: With effect from Nov 2001, all the Wildlife Sanctuaries in
Madhya Pradesh, will be closed on Tuesdays.
Krishnagiri Upavan National Park (Maharashtra).
Formerly known as Borvili, this park protects an important scenic area
close to Bombay. Kanheri Caves and Vihar, Tulsi and Powari Lakes;
water birds, smaller types of wildlife. Outdoor movie, nearby Lion
Safari Park. Airport: Bombay 20km. Railhead: Borvili 3km. Season:
October-June. Accommodation: Tourist Cabins.
Tadoba National Park (Maharashtra).
Teak forest and lake; tiger, leopard, nilgai, gaur. Viewing by night.
Airport: Nagpur 208km. Railhead: Chandrapur 45km. Season: March-May.
Accommodation: Within the Park.
Sasan Gir National Park (Gujarat),
Forested plains and lake; only home of Asiatic Lion, sambar,
chowsingha, nilgai, leopard, chinkara and wild boar Airport Rajkot
153km. Railhead: Sasan Gir 0,5km. Season: January-May. Accommodation:
Within the Park.
Nal Sarovar Bird Sanctuary (Gujarat).
Lake; migratory water birds; indigenous birds include flamingos.
Airport: Ahmedabad 64kms. Railhead: Viramgam 40km. Season:
November-February. Accommodation: Available near the lake.
Little Rann of Kutch Wildlife
Sanctuary (Gujarat).
Desert; herds of khur (Indian wild ass), wolf, caracal. Airport:
Ahmedabad 195km. Railhead: Dhrangadhra 25km. Season: October-June.
AccommodationWithin the Sanctuary / Dhrangadhra. Arrange access at
Bhuj.
Velvadar National Park (Gujarat).
New Delta grasslands, large concentration of blackbuck. Airport A
Railhead: Bhavnagar 65km. Season: October- June. Accommodation: Within
the Park. |
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Information
provided by
Department of Tourism. Ministry of Tourism and Culture.
Government of India. |
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