PALAMAU NATIONAL PARK - INDIA

Palamau is one of the popular national parks of India. Palamau is situated within the lndo-Malayan realm and is rich in flora and fauna, though the area is prone to severe droughts. There are 107 villages in the buffer area and three in the core with a human population of 65,000 and a livestock population of 45,000. The core is distributed into two parts, the actual core and the recently inducted 'satellite core'. The park was brought under Project Tiger in 1973 and is among the first nine Tiger Reserves of the country. The core area was declared a National Park in September 1989.

LOCATION OF PALAMAU NATIONAL PARK

The Palamau National Park is located in the eastern Indian state of Bihar and is in the western part of the Chotanagpur plateau. The region extends from the latitude 23°25'-23°55' in the North to the longitude 83°50'-84°25' in the East. Palamau is one of the often visited national parks of India.

Area 97, 927 ha
Temperature Maximum 45°C
Temperature Minimum 3°C
Best Time to Visit February to April
Languages Spoken Hindi and English


TOURISTS ATTRACTIONS OF PALAMAU NATIONAL PARK

The vegetation in this region comprises moist deciduous and dry deciduous forests and includes sal and bamboo as the major components. The western part of the Reserve is composed of dry deciduous forests and the other part shows characters of moist mixed deciduous nature. The entire area has a good distribution of bamboo breaks. The herbarium recently prepared by the Tiger Reserve authorities records a good number of medicinal plants.

At the last count, there were around 44 tigers in the park. Other important inhabitants of the sanctuary are wolves, hares, chital, nilgai, monkey, common langur, gaur, leopard, and sambar. Elephants are also seen in large numbers in the park. There are several other national parks of India renowned for their elephant population.

The world's first tiger-census, based on pugmark count, was done in the Palamau forests in 1932. One can drive through patches of dense sal and bamboo forests in the park. Tiger, panther, sloth bear, gaur, Indian porcupine, wolf, wild boar, dhole (wild dogs), chinkara, sambar, mouse deer and pangolin find refuge in these forests. Elephants appear during the monsoon with the availability of water. During the rest of the months, the water sources dry up and the park faces acute water-scarcity. The park is spread over a core area of 250 square kilometers and is also known as the Betla National Park. Peafowl, red jungle fowl, and partridges are the common birds here.

A ride into the Tiger Reserve is quite exciting, if not always rewarding. One can hire a guide and a jeep from the forest department. The core of the forest is not open to tourists. Watch towers and ground hides have been created to see the wildlife in relative stillness and safety.

There are two large forts looming in lonely isolation deep in the forests. These forts are said to have been built by the Adivasi kings of the Chero dynasty. Raja Medhni Raj, the ruler of Chotanagpur began the construction and the task of completing the forts was left to his son Pratap Raj while the father battled with invaders. The main sentinel of the old fort is visible high up on the hill. It has defences in three directions, and three main gates, the largest named Singh Dwar (Lion Gate). The Nagpuri Gate has two inscriptions in Sanskrit and Persian. On the imposing main gate of the lower fort, some embellishments in blue tile are still intact. The architecture is very Islamic which speaks of Daud Khan's conquest. During the British times a sum was paid regularly for the upkeep of the forests and a lot of excavation and restoration was carried out.

Tages : Palamu National Park, Palamau National Park in Bihar, Palamau National Park Jharkhand