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> Kanha |
| Kanha |
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Survival Guide |
| Be prepared for the cold of the winter or the
heat of the summer. The climate is extreme. Cotton clothes worn
in layers keep one fairly warm, but woollens are essential,
as early mornings and late evenings can be cold. The moving
jeep makes the cold really uncomfortable, so windcheaters and
headgear must be standard equipment on a winter trip.
• Wear "jungle colours" to blend into the
background when you are in the forest.
• If your stomach is delicate, take care to eat only
well cooked food.
• A simple first aid kit should suffice.
• Cameras get bounced about and dust ridden on the
jungle drives. Ensure protection.
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Shopping |
| The state of Madhya Pradesh, geographically the
heartland of India, is part of what used to be called the Central
Provinces. Here rich Sal forests once existed, but most have
been felled for cultivation, hydropower and industrial projects.
Predictably, much of the wildlife has disappeared.
The area that is now the Kanha National Park was once a sportsman's
paradise, as borne out by Dunbar Brander, who wrote in his
epic book, Wild Animals in Central India: "This tract
contained as much game as any tract I ever saw in the best
parts of Africa in 1908… I have seen 1,500 head consisting
of eleven species in an evening's stroll."
Both the Banjar and Halon valleys used to be the exclusive
hunting grounds of the British. The area then supported the
Swamp deer or Hardground Barasingha in such large numbers
that they virtually dominated the landscape. Over hunting
led to the forests being closed to shikar in 1931, and they
were gazetted as a sanctuary in 1933.
In 1955, a 250 sq km area was declared the Kanha National
Park, primarily to save the Hardground Barasingha, exclusive
only to India and severely threatened with extinction (numbers
had fallen to 550). By now, Kanha was fairly well known, and
administrators were always on the lookout to expand its protected
area. Consequently land from surrounding areas was continually
added, with the Mukki Valley also coming under its protective
umbrella in 1970. In 1974, thanks to Project Tiger, a vital
chunk of the upper Halon Valley towards the east was also
included. Today the Kanha Tiger Reserve is a 1,945 sq km park,
and a prime breeding habitat for the endangered cats.
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History / Geography |
| The state of Madhya Pradesh, geographically the
heartland of India, is part of what used to be called the Central
Provinces. Here rich Sal forests once existed, but most have
been felled for cultivation, hydropower and industrial projects.
Predictably, much of the wildlife has disappeared.
The area that is now the Kanha National Park was once a sportsman's
paradise, as borne out by Dunbar Brander, who wrote in his
epic book, Wild Animals in Central India: "This tract
contained as much game as any tract I ever saw in the best
parts of Africa in 1908… I have seen 1,500 head consisting
of eleven species in an evening's stroll."
Both the Banjar and Halon valleys used to be the exclusive
hunting grounds of the British. The area then supported the
Swamp deer or Hardground Barasingha in such large numbers
that they virtually dominated the landscape. Over hunting
led to the forests being closed to shikar in 1931, and they
were gazetted as a sanctuary in 1933.
In 1955, a 250 sq km area was declared the Kanha National
Park, primarily to save the Hardground Barasingha, exclusive
only to India and severely threatened with extinction (numbers
had fallen to 550). By now, Kanha was fairly well known, and
administrators were always on the lookout to expand its protected
area. Consequently land from surrounding areas was continually
added, with the Mukki Valley also coming under its protective
umbrella in 1970. In 1974, thanks to Project Tiger, a vital
chunk of the upper Halon Valley towards the east was also
included. Today the Kanha Tiger Reserve is a 1,945 sq km park,
and a prime breeding habitat for the endangered cats.
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Legends |
In the hot and dry summers all water sources dry
up except for a few perennial streams or ponds. One such is
a lake near the main meadow called Shravan Tal. Legend has it
that Raja Dasrath of Ayodhya shot an arrow while hunting deer
and accidentally killed a young man called Shravan, who was
out collecting water for his aged blind parents. The good king
had mistaken him for a deer drinking at the lake. When the king
sorrowfully carried Shravan's body to his parents, they both
died instantly of shock and grief. According to the Hindu epic,
the Ramayana, much of what followed in the king's life was governed
by the death of Shravan, for which he and his family paid a
heavy personal price.
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Conservation Notes |
| For management purposes the park is divided into
three zones -- the core, buffer and tourism. Mobile patrols
with radio links have been set up as anti-poaching squads, nevertheless
poaching gangs that often misuse tribal people to do their dirty
work are a continual threat to tigers and other wildlife.
Intensive soil and water conservation schemes, including
contour trenches, percolation tanks and nullah (stream) plugs,
have proven their worth. Even when the areas outside the park
are drought stricken, water sources inside help recharge the
ground water, thus bringing major relief to hundreds of surrounding
villages. Seepage springs and masonry dams can be seen working
at Kanka and at Sonph. Such well-watered areas are virtual
magnets for wildlife, inducing them to stay within the confines
of the park, and thus helping avoid conflicts with villagers.
The success of Kanha can largely be attributed to such successful
water harvesting practices, which also helped to disperse
wildlife from the main Kanha meadows, which were becoming
over-populated.
No forestry projects or timber exploitation is allowed in
Kanha. Cattle grazing has been stopped, though villagers do
manage to sneak in. When 20 villages agreed to shift outside
the Park between 1971-1977, this further eased grazing pressures
and disturbances.
In 1970, a special 28-hectare chain link enclosure was created
to protect Barasingha from predators, including tigers, leopards
and even jackals that easily lifted the fawns. In 1972-73
the annual burning of the forest, which was a management practice
for years, was disallowed, and this greatly helped the Barasingha,
whose fawns were able to hide in the resultant tall grasses.
Tigers also benefited in the process and as of now, happily,
both are reasonably safe in Kanha.
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Suggested Reading |
• The Deer and the Tiger by George Schaller,
University of Chicago Press
• Through the Tiger's
Eyes by Stanley Breeden and Belinda Wright, Ten Speed Press
• Kanha Tiger Reserve: Portrait of an Indian National
Park by Carroll Moulton and Ernie J. Hulsey, Vakils, Feffer
and Simons Ltd.
• Sanctuary Asia Vol II No. 2 Apr/Jun
'82 Saving the Barasingha by H.S. Panwar
• Sanctuary
Asia Vol III No. 1 Jan/Mar '83 Kanha National Park by H.S. Panwar
• Sanctuary Asia Vol VIII No. 2 Apr/Jun '88 Project Tiger
Issue: Tiger Reserves and People by Bittu Sahgal
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