National Parks of India

A national park is measure take to preserve our environment. The common idea behind national parks is conservation of wild nature for posterity and a symbol of national pride. An international organization, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and its World Commission on Protected Areas, has defined “National Park” as its Category II type of protected areas. Indian National parks are IUCN category 2 national parks. Till 1970, India only had 5 national parks. The wildlife protection act and project tiger were enacted in 1972 to safeguard and protect the habitat of many animal species which were on the cusp of extinction. As of July 2015, there were 105 national parks which encompass an area of 40,500 km2, comprising 1.23% of India’s total surface area.

Major National parks of India –

1. Jim Corbett National Park – This Natiional park is named after Jim Corbett who played a crucial role in the establishment of the national park. Established in 1936 to protect endangered Bengal Tigers, this park was earlier named as Hailey National park and is the oldest national park in India. It is located in Nainital, Uttarakhand and covers an 520.8 km2. It houses around 110 tree species, 50 species of mammals, 580 bird species and 25 reptile species. Water sources in Jim Corbett national park –
   1. River Ramganga passes through Jim Corbett national park and is the major sources of water to the animals living in the national park. It is tributary of the Ganges.
   2. River Kosi – The Kosi is a perennial river that servers major portion of the Corbett’s wild It server the eastern periphery of the park although, the Kosi does not enter the park boundary.
   3. Sonanadi – This river is the significant tributary of Ramganga River. It enters the Corbett from the North-West direction and merges into the Ramganga River at its reservoir.
2. The Gir Forest National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary – It was established in 1965 and is the sole home of Asiatic lions. This national extracts its importance from species it supports. It covers a total area of 1,412 km2 (545 sq mi). This park has proved to be a vitalizing event in terms of Asiatic lion population was has increased consistently over the years. In 2015, the population was 523 (increase of 27% as compared to previous census in 2010). There are 109 males, 201 females and 213 young/cubs according to the reports. There are many perennial rivers which pass through Gir region namely Hiran, Shetrunji, Datardi, Shingoda, Machhundri, Godavari and Raval. Hiran, Machhundri, Raval and Shingoda rivers have dams which act as water reservoirs for the park including the biggest reservoir in the area, the Kamleshwar Dam, dubbed ‘the lifeline of Gir’.

3. Bannerghatta National Park
   1974. Established in 1971 and declared as a national park in 1974.
   1975. Location – Karnataka, India
   1976. Area – 104.27 km2.
   1977. Water Sources – The park receives an annual rainfall of 700 mm per year. The Suvarnamukhi stream runs through the national park and provides a pond whose waters are believed to have curative properties. The park also has four bore wells to provide water in dry times.
   1978. Species supported – One hundred and one species of birds have been recorded in the park and this park also has a presence of hippopotamus.
4. The Great Himalayan National Park– This park is a UNESCO Heritage Site.
   1. Established – 1984
   2. Location – Kullu region of Himachal Pradesh.
   3. Area – It is spread over 1171 km2 and is present at an altitude of 1500-6000m
   4. Species Supported – Blue sheep, snow leopard, Himalayan brown bear, Himalayan tahr, and musk deer
   5. Water Sources – JiwaNal, Sainj and Tirthan Rivers and the north-westerly flowing Parvati River.
5. Kanha National park –
   1. Established – 1955 and is one of the top 10 tourist destinations
   2. Location – Madhya Pradesh, india
   3. Area – 940 km2
   4. Major Species Supported – Royal Bengal tiger, Indian leopards, the sloth bear, barasingha and Indian wild dog.
6. Kaziranga National Park –
   1. Established – 1908 as a reserve forest. This national park is a UNESCO Heritage Site.
   2. Location – Assam, India.
   3. Area – 430 km2
   4. Supported Species – This national park is home to 2/3^rd of world’s population of one-horned rhinoceros. It is also home to 15 species which are threatened as per IUCN Red list.
   5. Water Sources –Kaziranga National Park is crisscrossed by Brahmaputra, Diphlu, Mora Diphlu and Mora Dhansiri and has numerous other small water bodies.

7. The Keoladeo National Park –
   1. Established – 1982 and UNESCO World Heritage Site
   2. Location – Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India
   3. Area – 29 km2
   4. Supported Species – Keoladeo National Park is one of the world’s best bird sanctuaries. It supports an impressive366 bird species, 50 species of fish, 13 species of snakes, 7 turtle species.
   5. Water sources – The major source of water for Keoladeo National Park was Gambhir river that went dry more than a decade ago owing to construction of Panchana Dam in Karauli district. So now the river only flows when Panchana dam over flows, which happened only thrice in the past 12 years. The park is facing major threat of extinction as water supply is an issue of concern as many species of birds have stopped coming to Bharatpur.
8. Sundarbans National Park –
   1. Established – 1984 and it is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a Tiger Reserve.
   2. Location – West Bengal, India
   3. Area – 1330 Km2
   4. Supported Species – This national park is one of the largest reserves for the Bengal tiger.
   5. Water Sources – The Sundarbans National park is present at the delta of Ganges, Brahmputra and Malta river and The Piyali River flows through the Sunderbans and joins river Matla.