Kanha National Park, History, Feature, Biodiversity and Conservation

Kanha National Park

Kanha National Park, also known as Kanha Kisli National Park, is the biggest national park in the state of Madhya Pradesh and one of India’s tiger sanctuaries. It covers 940 square kilometers in Madhya Pradesh’s two districts of Mandla and Balaghat. It was established around 1933. The governing body of this national park is Madhya Pradesh Forest Department. It is one of the important topic of Environment one of the important subject of UPSC Syllabus. The UPSC Mock Test can help candidates prepare for the exam with more precision.

Kanha National Park History

Originally, Kanha National Park belonged to Gondwana, also referred to as the “land of the Gonds.” The Gonds and the Baigas, two native communities of Central India, hampered the Kanha Tiger Reserve’s forest. Residents of these groups are still present in the reserve’s neighbourhood. The Kanha Tiger Reserve, located in the districts of Mandla and Balaghat, is home to two important sanctuaries: the Hallon and the Banjar Sanctuaries. It was started in India to conserve tigers. The Kanha Reserve consists of two distinct regions, 250 square kilometres and 300 square kilometers, which combined total 1,949 square kilometres.

Kanha National Park Feature

The Manadala and Balaghat areas contain 940 km2 of the Kanha National Park. The reserve is divided into two sections: the central zones and the buffer zones. The total coverage area is 1,949 square kilometers, of which the core zone—also known as the Kanha National Park—covers 940 square kilometres and the multiple-use region at least 1009 square kilometres.

The Phen Wildlife Sanctuary is another, and it’s spread out over an area of 110.740 sq km near to the Kanha Tiger Reserve. From Jabalpur, it is 160 kilometres southeast. At the two ends of the park, at Khatia-Kisli and Mukki Gate, respectively, are two entry gates. The distance between these two entrances is 40 kilometres.

The boundary of the tiger sanctuary is where the Chattisgarh city of Raipur is situated. The dense forests between the Vindhya and Satpura hills, which are home to a diversity of flora and fauna, are proud of the Kanha Tiger Reserve, India’s second national park, which is its crown jewel.

Read More: Jim Corbett National Park

Kanha National Park Biodiversity

Biodiversity is abundant in Kanha National Park. The splendours of wild animals thrive in this arena’s tropical central mountains, which are the ideal habitat. The Indian leopard, Bengal tiger, barasingha, swamp deer, Indian wild dog, sloth bear, and dhole are among the other animals found there. Additionally, Bhoorsingh the Barasingha, its official mascot, is the first tiger sanctuary in India.

Flora

In Kanha Tiger Reserve, a variety of flowering plant species can be discovered. Kanha National Park’s forest is naturally split into highland and lowland areas. There is a highland woodland there.

The lowland forest, which contains a diversity of sal and other mixed-forest trees, is dotted with meadows. The bamboo on slopes in nature is totally different from the tropical damp, dry deciduous highland woods. There is also a well-known Indian ghost tree in the dense forest.

Fauna

There are colonies of the Bengal tiger, Indian leopard, dhole, sloth bear, Bengal fox, and Indian jackal in Kanha National Park. In marshes, the barasingha are acclimated to residing. The gaur lives in the grasslands and waterholes of the forest. The refuge rarely contains blackbuck.

Black ibis, Asian green bee-eater, cattle egret, blossom-headed parakeet, Indian pond heron, drongo, common teal, crested serpent eagle, and Indian grey hornbill are some of the 300 distinct bird species that can be found in the reserve.

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Kanha Tiger Reserve Corridor

As a significant tiger source population, Kanha Tiger Reserve has a lengthy history of conservation. Between the Kanha and Pench Tiger Reserves, there is a busy corridor. The Achanakmar Tiger Reserve in Chhattisgarh State is linked to Kanha as well. In order to encourage ecologically sustainable land use in the Kanha-Pench corridor, the State of Madhya Pradesh has taken the initiative to create a general plan for the corridor.

Emphasis has also been placed on addressing the livelihood problems of the communities residing in and around the corridor in order to lessen the biotic strain on the forests.

Kanha National Park Conservation

The region was declared a total sanctuary in 1952 as a result of the post-1947 tiger population decline. Kanha National Park was created in 1955 as a result of a special classification. Since then, a number of strict conservation initiatives have been implemented to safeguard the Park’s flora and fauna, earning Kanha the rightful distinction as one of Asia’s finest and best-managed National Parks.

This Park, the centrepiece of the Kanha Tiger Reserve established in 1974 under “Project Tiger,” boasts the same abundance of wildlife as in the past. Project Tiger envisioned intensive conservation efforts to safeguard the ecosystem and support the tiger.

Kanha National Park UPSC

The 940 square kilometre Kanha National Park is situated in the Maikal group of hills in Madhya Pradesh. Rudyard Kipling, a well-known author best known for his masterpiece “The Jungle Book,” was influenced by this vibrant environment. The Kanha National Park is the ideal habitat for a variety of wild animals, from enormous tigers to the most thickly populated Barasingha, as well as numerous species of plants, birds, reptiles, and insects. Students can read all the details related to UPSC visiting the official website of StudyIQ UPSC online Coaching.

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