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> Wildlife Sanctuaries in India
> Kaziranga |
| Kaziranga |
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Insider Tips |
• Slow your pace. Take a flask of tea and
a small snack (no elaborate lunches allowed) and spend time
in one of the many watchtowers. Ask your guide to take you to
all three ranges, keeping a full morning or afternoon outing
for each sector.
• Book your jeep and elephant rides
in advance to avoid disappointment.
• The rhino may
look benign and slow moving, but it can move extremely fast
and if provoked can deliver a vicious bite, or worse. Because
they are short sighted, they tend to 'false charge' when spooked.
Often sightings, even from vehicles, can be at very close distances
when it is wise to keep very quiet, make no sudden movement
and keep the vehicle engine running. In the event of a charge,
the armed guard with you has instructions to shoot a round in
the air. You might like to help him by banging loudly against
the side of your vehicle.
• Without a pair of binoculars
and a good bird book, your Kaziranga visit will lose half its
potential.
• The trick in watching wildlife is to
ask for a guide who really knows about the kind of things that
interest you. Some, for instance, will know just where to look
for otters. Others may be good birdwatchers. With luck you might
get someone who fits both bills, in which case, tip him well
and hold on to him for the duration of your trip.
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Tall grasses that look flattened can tell you a story... a herd
of elephant that had camped there, perhaps. Searching for such
clues and asking lots of questions can multiply your pleasure.
Often the effort to unravel jungle clues is almost as exciting
as watching wild animals themselves.
• Take the time
to go on a dolphin watch on the Brahmaputra.
• If
you see someone littering or smoking in the park, tell him or
her very politely to desist. Even small actions like these can
make an overall difference to the park. This is sure to enhance
your own experience as you holiday.
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Shopping |
Cane weaving is a popular cottage industry. Furniture
made is well designed and hardy, but difficult to cart home.
Moga silk and woollen shawls are available for sale in even
the small towns.
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History / Geography |
Kaziranga was originally established as a reserve
forest in 1908. It became a game sanctuary in 1916 and a favourite
haunt for poachers and hunters alike. In response to outcries
that the rhino was headed for extinction, hunting was banned
and Kaziranga was declared a forest reserve (230 sq km) and
then a wildlife sanctuary in 1926. It opened to visitors in
1938 thanks to the initiative of A J W Milroy, Chief Conservator,
who put an end to much of the poaching. In the 1950s large tracts
of tropical forest were cleared for the tea industry and with
it came more people. Much of the wild habitat of Assam was consequently
lost to human settlement and their attendant ills (poaching
is still a major problem). In 1954, the rhino was given legal
protection through the Assam (Rhinoceros) Bill that laid down
heavy penalties for killing the pachyderms. Kaziranga was declared
a National Park in 1974 and the original core area of 428 sq
km was declared a World Heritage Site in December 1985. It is
here that the one-horned rhino is making its main stand, though
populations are thinly represented in other states including
Jaldapara in West Bengal and the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve in Uttar
Pradesh (where they were reintroduced).
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Legends |
The Brahmaputra is said to be the only 'male'
river in India, so named because he is considered to be the
son of Brahma (putra means son), the Creator of the Universe.
Some people now suggest that the river is behaving like Shiva
(The Destroyer) on account of its penchant to send down devastating
floods.
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Conservation Notes |
| The Rhinoceros and the Bengal Florican need special
protection in Kaziranga, as does the forest itself. Rhino poaching
remains a serious problem, with some 25-50 animals killed each
year for the value of their horn (actually nothing but matted
hair), which is believed to have medicinal value in traditional
Chinese medicine.
Poachers locate rhinos easily because the animals follow
trails, next to which are mounds of dung. Deep pits with sharpened
stakes are dug into such trails. The staff of the park are
highly motivated, but ill-equipped to deal with poachers who
are better armed, have faster vehicles and sophisticated communication
equipment. Over the years many guards have lost their lives
protecting these magnificent beasts, and visitors are encouraged
to contact the Field Director to find out how to contribute
to a fund set up to look after their families.
Although there are no villages inside the national park and
no grazing is allowed, there are human settlements on three
sides and tea plantations surround the park. As many as 39
villages exist in a 10 km radius in which 25,000 people live.
This pressure disturbs the natural migration of animals such
as elephants, and when they do venture out, man-animal conflicts
take place with tragic results for both.
The busy national highway with trucks hurtling through on
the southern boundary, bisects the wildlife habitat and cuts
off the escape route to high ground when the floods come.
Vehicles also take a major toll on animals each year.
The Brahmaputra river has eroded more than 50 sq km of the
park and this loss is difficult to compensate. More land desperately
needs to be added from the adjoining Karbi Plateau and the
Mikr hills. To make the animals less vulnerable to floods
and poachers, 'high grounds' have been constructed, some with
help from the Indian army.
Another problem is the domestic water buffalo within the
park. Not only do they spread diseases like rinderpest, but
also by breeding with wild stock they dilute the genetic strength
through hybridisation.
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Suggested Reading |
• Sanctuary Asia Vol XVII No.4, August
1997, Kaziranga by Dr Anwaruddin Choudhury
• Unicornis,
The great Indian one-horned rhinoceros by Arup Kumar Dutta,
Konark Publishers Pvt Ltd.
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