List of Indian National Parks

National park in India,  is an area which is strictly reserved for the betterment of the wildlife  and biodiversity, and where activities like developmental, forestry, poaching, hunting and grazing or cultivation are not permitted. The government can declare an area as a national park with adequate  ecological, geo-morphological and natural significance. In these parks, even private ownership rights  are not allowed. List of national parks in INDIA Name State Established Area (in km2) Notability Rivers and lakes inside the national park Anamudi Shola National Park Kerala 2003 7.5 Anshi National Park Karnataka 1987 417.34 Great hornbill, tiger, leopard, black panther, bear, elephant, deer Kali River (Karnataka) Balphakram National Park Meghalaya 1986 220 Wild water buffalo, red panda, elephant and eight cat species, including the tiger and marbled cat Bandhavgarh National Park Madhya Pradesh 1982 446 1336 species of endemic plants Bandipur National Park Karnataka 1974 874.2 Chital, Bengal tiger, gray langurs, Indian giant squirrel, gaur, leopard, sambar deer, Indian elephants, honey buzzard, red-headed vulture Kabini River, Moyar River Bannerghatta National Park Karnataka 1986 104.3 Tiger, sloth bear, peacock, elephant, sambar deer, mouse deer Betla National Park  Jharkhand 1999 1135 Tiger, Indian bison, elephant, hyenas, monkey, leopard North Koyal River Bhitarkanika National Park Odisha 1988 145 Mangroves, saltwater crocodile, white crocodile, Indian python, black ibis, wild pigs, rhesus monkeys, olive ridley sea turtle, chital Brahmani River, Baitarani River, Dhamra River, Pathsala Bison (Rajbari) National Park Tripura 2007 31.63 Blackbuck National Park, Velavadar Gujarat 1976 34.08 Blackbuck Lodge, the endangered Indian grey wolf, the nocturnal striped hyena, Indian fox, golden jackal, jungle cat and many small mammals like hare, gerbil, field mice, mongoose and hedgehog. Buxa Tiger Reserve West Bengal 1992 760 Campbell Bay National Park Andaman and Nicobar Islands 1992 426.23 Chandoli National Park Maharashtra 2004 317.67 Clouded Leopard National Park Tripura 2003 5.08 Dachigam National Park Jammu and Kashmir 1981 141 Only area where Kashmir stag is found[2] Desert National Park Rajasthan 1980 3162 Great Indian bustard Dibru-Saikhowa National Park Assam 1999 340 Feral horse Brahmaputra, Lohit River, Dibru Dudhwa National Park Uttar Pradesh 1977 490.29 Tiger, Sambar deer, hog deer Eravikulam National Park Kerala 1978 97 Nilgiri tahr, Strobilanthes kunthiana Pambar River (Kerala) Galathea National Park Andaman and Nicobar Islands 1992 110 Gangotri National Park Uttarakhand 1989 2390 Gaumukh Glacier Ganga Gir Forest National Park Gujarat 1975 1412 Asiatic lion Hiran, Shetrunji River, Datardi, Shingoda, Machhundri, Godavari and Raval Gorumara National Park West Bengal 1994 79.45 The park is rich in large herbivores including Indian rhinoceros, gaur, Asian elephant, sloth bear, chital, and sambar deer Jaldhaka, Brahmaputra Govind Pashu Vihar National Park Uttarakhand 1990 472.08 Great Himalayan National Park Himachal Pradesh 1984 754.4 UNESCO World Heritage Site Gugamal National Park Maharashtra 1987 361.28 Guindy National Park Tamil Nadu 1976 2.82 Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park Tamil Nadu 1980 6.23 Guru Ghasidas (Sanjay) National Park Chhattisgarh 1981 1440.71 Hemis National Park Ladakh 1981 4400 Largest National park in India Inderkilla National Park Himachal Pradesh 2010 104 Indra Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary and National Park Tamil Nadu 1989 117.1 Indravati National Park Chhattisgarh 1981 1258.37 Wild Asian buffalo, tiger reserve, hill mynas Jaldapara National Park West Bengal 2012 216 Indian rhinoceros Jim Corbett National Park Uttarakhand 1936 1318.5 First national park in India (established in 1936 as Hailey National Park) Ramganga Kalesar National Park Haryana 2003 100.88 On the bank of Yamuna river Kanger Ghati National Park Chhattisgarh 1982 200 Kanha National Park Madhya Pradesh 1955 940 Kasu Brahmananda Reddy National Park Telangana 1994 1.42 Kaziranga National Park Assam 1974 858.98 Highest known tiger density in the world, Indian rhinoceros, UNESCO World Heritage Site Keibul Lamjao National Park Manipur 1977 40 Only floating park in the world Loktak Lake Keoladeo National Park Rajasthan 1981 28.73 UNESCO World Heritage Site Khangchendzonga National Park Sikkim 1977 1784 UNESCO World Heritage Site Khirganga National Park Himachal Pradesh 2010 710 Kishtwar National Park Jammu and Kashmir 1981 400 Kudremukh National Park Karnataka 1987 600.32 Kuno National Park Madhya Pradesh 2018 748.76 Asiatic Lion Reintroduction Project Madhav National Park Madhya Pradesh 1959 375.22 Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park Andaman and Nicobar Islands 1983 281.5 Mahavir Harina Vanasthali National Park Telangana 1994 14.59 Manas National Park Assam 1990 950 UNESCO World Heritage Site Mandla Plant Fossils National Park Madhya Pradesh 1983 0.27 Marine National Park, Gulf of Kutch Gujarat 1980 162.89 Mathikettan Shola National Park Kerala 2003 12.82 elephants Middle Button Island National Park Andaman and Nicobar Islands 1987 0.44 Mollem National Park Goa 1978 107 Mouling National Park Arunachal Pradesh 1986 483 Mount Harriet National Park Andaman and Nicobar Islands 1987 46.62 Important bird area as attributed by BirdLife International Mrugavani National Park Telangana 1994 3.6 Mudumalai National Park Tamil Nadu 1940 321.55 Mukundra Hills National Park Rajasthan 2006 200.54 Mukurthi National Park Tamil Nadu 2001 78.46 Nilgiri tahr Murlen National Park Mizoram 1991 100 Nagarhole National Park Karnataka 1988 643.39 aka Rajiv Gandhi National Park (Nagarhole) Namdapha National Park Arunachal Pradesh 1974 1985.24 Tiger Nameri National Park Assam 1978 137.07 Nanda Devi National Park Uttarakhand 1982 630.33 UNESCO World Heritage Site, UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve Navegaon National Park Maharashtra 1975 133.88 Neora Valley National Park West Bengal 1986 88 Nokrek National Park Meghalaya 1986 47.48 UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve North Button Island National Park Andaman and Nicobar Islands 1979 0.44 Ntangki National Park Nagaland 1993 202.02 Orang National Park Assam 1999 78.81 aka Rajiv Gandhi National Park (Orang) Pambadum Shola National Park Kerala 2003 1.32 Nilgiri marten, Nilgiri wood pigeon, Nilgiri langur, Nilgiri flycatcher, Blue rock-thrush Panna National Park Madhya Pradesh 1981 542.67 Papikonda National Park Andhra Pradesh 2008 1012.85 Royal Bengal Tiger, Leopards, rusty-spotted cat, King Cobra Pench National Park[3] Madhya Pradesh 1977 758 Rudyard Kipling's 'Jungle Book' was set in this NP. Periyar National Park Kerala 1982 305 Malabar parakeet, Malabar grey hornbill, Nilgiri laughing thrush, Nilgiri blue robin, great hornbill, Malabar pied hornbill, lion-tailed macaque, hairy-winged bat Phawngpui Blue Mountain National Park Mizoram 1992 50 Pin Valley National Park Himachal Pradesh 1987 807.36 Rajaji National Park Uttarakhand 1983 820 Mainly known for elephants, tigers, leopards and several species of birds, reptiles and mammals. Rajiv Gandhi National Park (Rameswaram) Andhra Pradesh 2005 2.4 Rani Jhansi Marine National Park Andaman and Nicobar Islands 1996 256.14 Ranthambore National Park Rajasthan 1981 392 Tiger Reserve. Saddle Peak National Park Andaman and Nicobar Islands 1979 32.54 Salim Ali National Park Jammu and Kashmir 1992 9.07 Sanjay Gandhi National Park Maharashtra 1969 104 , Indian Leopard, Rhesus Macaque, Bonnet Macaque, Spotted Deer, Hanuman Langur, Indian Flying Fox, Indian Hare, Barking Deer, Porcupine, Palm Civet, Mouse Deer Sanjay National Park[4] Madhya Pradesh 1981 466.7 Sariska Tiger Reserve Rajasthan 1955 866 Satpura National Park Madhya Pradesh 1981 524 Silent Valley National Park Kerala 1980 237 Indian bison, Travancore flying squirrel, Salim Ali's fruit bat, Stripe-necked mongoose, Blue-winged parakeet, Crimson-backed sunbird Kunthipuzha River Simbalbara National Park Himachal Pradesh 2010 27.88 Simlipal National Park Odisha 1980 2750 Tiger, leopard, Asian elephant, sambar, barking deer, gaur, jungle cat, wild boar Singalila National Park West Bengal 1986 78.6 Sirohi National Park Manipur 1982 41.3 South Button Island National Park Andaman and Nicobar Islands 1987 0.03 Dugong, dolphin, water monitor lizard, blue whale and smallest National park in India Sri Venkateswara National Park Andhra Pradesh 1989 353 Sultanpur National Park Haryana 1989 1.43 Sundarbans National Park West Bengal 1984 1330.12 UNESCO World Heritage Site Tadoba National Park Maharashtra 1955 625 Tiger Valley of Flowers National Park Uttarakhand 1982 87.5 UNESCO World Heritage Site Valmiki National Park Bihar 1976 898.45 Van Vihar National Park Madhya Pradesh 1983 4.48 Vansda National Park Gujarat 1979 23.99
(This list may not be totally the same as given by the Directory of WWFF  which can be found at their web page )

List of Indian Biosphere Reserves, and Marine National Parks/Sanctuaries.

Biosphere reserves and Marine National Parks/Sanctuaries   of India
Name	State	Year	Area (km2)	Key fauna	Location	Type
Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve	Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka	1986	5520	Nilgiri tahr, tiger, lion-tailed macaque	Part of Waynad, Nagarhole, Bandipur and Mudumalai, Nilambur, Silent Valley	Western Ghats
Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve	Uttarakhand	1988	5860	Snow leopard, Himalayan black bear	Parts of Chamoli District, Pithoragarh District & Bageshwar District	Western Himalayas
Gulf of Mannar	Tamil Nadu	1989	10500	Dugong	Indian part of Gulf of Mannar extending from Rameswaram island in the north to Kanyakumari in the south of Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka	Coasts
Nokrek	Meghalaya	1988	820.00	Red panda	In west Garo Hills	Eastern hills
Sundarbans	West Bengal	1989	9630	Royal Bengal tiger	Part of delta of Ganges and Brahmaputra river system	Gangetic Delta
Manas	Assam	1989	2837	Asiatic elephant, tiger, Assam roofed turtle, hispid hare, golden langur, pygmy hog	Part of Kokrajhar, Bongaigaon, Barpeta, Nalbari, Kamrup and Darrang Districts	Eastern Hills
Simlipal	Odisha	1994	4374	Gaur, royal Bengal tiger, Asian elephant	Part of Mayurbhanj district	Deccan Peninsula
Dihang-Dibang	Arunachal Pradesh	1998	5112	Mishmi takin, musk deer	Part of Siang and Dibang Valley	Eastern Himalaya
Pachmarhi Biosphere Reserve	Madhya Pradesh	1999	4981.72	Giant squirrel, flying squirrel	Parts of Betul District, Hoshangabad District and Chhindwara District	Semi-Arid
Achanakmar-Amarkantak Biosphere Reserve	Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh	2005	3835	Four-horned antelope, Indian wild dog, sarus crane, white-rumped vulture, sacred grove bush frog	Part of Annupur, Dindori and Bilaspur districts	Maikala Hills
Great Rann of Kutch	Gujarat	2008	12454	Indian wild ass	Part of Kutch, Morbi, Surendranagar and Patan districts; the largest biosphere reserve in India.	Desert
Cold Desert	Himachal Pradesh	2009	7770	Snow leopard	Pin Valley National Park and surroundings; Chandratal and Sarchu & Kibber Wildlife Sanctuary	Western Himalayas
Khangchendzonga	Sikkim	2000	2620	Snow leopard, red panda	Parts of Kangchenjunga	East Himalayas
Agasthyamalai Biosphere Reserve	Kerala, Tamil Nadu	2001	3500.08	Nilgiri tahr, Asian elephant	Neyyar, Peppara and Shenduruny Wildlife Sanctuary and their adjoining areas	Western Ghats
Great Nicobar	Andaman and Nicobar Islands	1989	885	Saltwater crocodile	Southernmost of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands	Islands
Dibru-Saikhowa	Assam	1997	765	White-winged wood duck, water buffalo, black-breasted parrotbill, tiger, capped langur	Part of Dibrugarh and Tinsukia districts	Eastern Hills
Seshachalam Hills	Andhra Pradesh	2010	4755	Slender loris	Seshachalam Hill Ranges covering parts of Chittoor and Kadapa districts	Eastern Ghats
Panna	Madhya Pradesh	2011	2998.98	Tiger, chital, chinkara, sambhar and sloth bear	Part of Panna District and Chhatarpur District	Catchment Area of the Ken River
Gulf of Kutch Marine National Park	Gujarat	1980	270	coral lichen, sea slug,shelled mollusc, octopus, painted storks, flamingos.	Jamnagar District; 42 islands	southern Gulf of Kutch
Mahathma Gandhi Marine National Park	Andaman	1983	281.5	coral, turtle	29 km from Port Blair.
Gahirmatha Marine Wildlife Sanctuary	Odisha	1997	1435	Olive Ridley Turtles
Malwan Marine Wildlife Sanctuary	Maharashtra	1987	29.22.	Flamingos,gulls, terns,	Sindhudurg District.

Conservation and protection of wildlife in India

Conservation and protection of wildlife in India

India has the following kinds of protected areas, in the sense of the word designated by IUCN:

• National Parks

• Wildlife sanctuaries

• Biosphere reserves

• Reserved and protected forests

• Conservation reserves and community reserves

• Private protected areas

• Conservation areas

As in May 2012, the protected areas of India cover 156,700 square kilometres (60,500 sq mi), roughly 4.95% of the total surface area.

There are four categories of Protected areas in India constituted under the provisions of Wildlife ( Protection) ACT, 1972. Tiger Reserves are constituted by including the areas of National parks and Wildlife sanctuaries. There are 50 tiger reserves in India.

National Parks No-104 Area 40501.03 % in geographical area - 1.23

Wildlife Sanctuaries No, 551 Area -118931.80 % in geographical area 3.51

Conservation Reserves No.88 Area -2594.03 % of geographical area-0.08

Community Reserves No. 127 Area 72.61 % of geographical area -0.002

Total Protected Areas No. 870 Area 162,099.47 km² % of geographical area -4.93

(Source -ENVIS Centre, Wildlife Institute of India, 2018)

National parks

National parks (IUCN Category II): India's first national park is Jim Corbett National Park, established in 1936. By 1970, India had 5 national parks; today it has 105 national parks. In terms of area, they encompassed a total 40,501.03 sq.km, comprising 1.23% of India's total surface area.

Wildlife sanctuaries

Wildlife sanctuaries (IUCN Category IV): India has 551 animal sanctuaries,covering about 1,18,932 Sq km(comprising 3.51 % of India's total surface area.) referred to as Wildlife Sanctuaries. Among these, the 50 Tiger Reserves are governed by Project Tiger, and are of special significance in the conservation of the tiger. Latest tiger reserve is Kamlang Tiger Reserve in Arunachal Pradesh. Now, the number of Tiger Reserves in India is 50.

Biosphere reserves

Biosphere reserve (UNESCO designation roughly corresponding to IUCN Category V): The Indian government has established Biosphere reserves, for protecting larger areas of natural habitat, and often include one or more national parks and/or preserves, along buffer zones that are open to limited economic activities. The Indian government has established 18 Biosphere Reserves of India.

Reserved and protected forests

Reserved forests and protected forest (IUCN Category IV or VI, depending on protection accorded): These are forested lands where logging, hunting, grazing and other activities may be permitted on a sustainable basis to members of certain communities. In reserved forests, explicit permission is required for such activities. In protected forests, such activities are allowed unless explicitly prohibited. Thus, in general reserved forests enjoy a higher degree of protection with respect to protected forests.

Conservation and community reserves

Conservation reserve and Community reserve (IUCN Category V and VI respectively): These are areas adjoining existing protected areas which are of ecological value and can act as migration corridors, or buffer zones. Conservation reserves are designated government owned land from where communities may earn a subsistence, while community reserves are on mixed government/private lands. Community reserves are the only privately held land accorded protection by the government of India.

Private protected areas

Private protected areas: These are regions which are owned by an individual or an organisation / corporation not affiliated to the government or a communal body. Even though Indian legislation does not provide protection to such areas, some NGOs are using methods such as land trusts to help in the conservation effort, and providing limited means of protection.

The World Land Trust, another non-profit organization, in partnership with the Wildlife Trust of India has funded two significant privately owned protected land holdings in India. The purpose of the holdings are to provide migration corridors to herds of Indian elephants,and the corresponding project is called the Wild Lands Corridor. The two corridors are:

• The Siju-Rewak corridor in the Garo Hills , of Meghalaya, for connection between the Siju Wildlife Sanctuary and the Rewak Reserved Forest. This is one of only four forded corridors across the Simsang River, which bisects the Garo Hills. This region also contains large omnivores and carnivores like the Bengal tiger, clouded leopard and the Himalayan black bear.

• The Tirunelli-Kudrakote corridor, of Kerala between the Tirunelli Reserved Forest and the Kudrakote Reserved Forest acts as a migration corridor for India's largest extant elephant population. The region is part of the Western Ghats, a biodiversity hotspot which is home to the Nilgiri tahr, Salim Ali's fruit bat and 13 endemic bird species including the Malabar parakeet. The trust is in the process of reallocation of villages in the corridor, and is planning to register the corridor as a reserved forest once reallocation is complete, so that standard government protection is obtained.

Gulf of Kutch Marine National Park VUFF-0029

Gulf of Kutch Marine National Park VUFF-0029

Marine National Park in the Gulf of Kutch is situated on the southern shore of the Gulf of Kutch in the Devbhumi Dwarka district of Gujarat state, India. In 1980, an area of 270 km2 from Okha to Jodiya was declared Marine Sanctuary. Later, in 1982, a core area of 110 km2 was declared Marine National Park under the provisions of the Wildlife (protection) Act, 1972 of India. There are 42 islands on the Jamnagar coast in the Marine National Park, most of them surrounded by reefs. The best known island is Pirotan.

The fauna found here include: 70 species of sponges, Coral 52 species including 44 species of hard coral and 10 species of soft coral. As the sea recedes, the sea creatures are exposed to the harsh sunlight before they retreat to deeper waters or take cover under rocks.

The birds visit the Narara coasts during low tide to pick on the fishes and crustaceans hiding beneath the rocks and reefs.Jellyfish, Portuguese man of war and sea anemones are other coelenterates found here. Arthropods include 27 species of prawns, 30 species of crabs, lobsters, shrimps and other crustaceans. Molluscs like pearl oysters and sea slugs are present. Octopus which change colour are also found. Echinoderms like starfish, sea cucumbers and sea urchins are present. The fishes found are puffer fishes, sea horse, sting ray, mudskippers and whale sharks which are an endangered species. Endangered sea turtles such as green sea turtles, olive ridleys and leatherbacks are seen here. There are three species of sea snakes. There are dugongs and smaller cetaceans like finless porpoises, common dolphins, bottlenose dolphins and Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins. Larger whales such as blue whales, sei whales are seen. Whale sharks can be found in deeper areas.A surprisingly large scale greater flamingo colony, reaching up to 20,000 nests is known to occur along the gulf.

Group of Indian Radioamateurs activated for the first time,  IOTA AS-175,  VUFF-0029                    from Beyt Shankhodar Island (aka Bet Dwarka Island) ;                 Logged 10,237 QSOs between 15 - 23 March 2012 as AT2DW.Other Operators were VU2CDP, SWS.                  QSL via VU2SWS and ClubLog.

The Sundarbans National Park. VUFF-0091

Sunderbans National Park

The Most Famous Tiger Zone in the World's Largest Mangrove Forest in India. The delta is spread over India and Bangladesh with an area of about 10,000 square kilometres and is enjoying the status of being largest halophytic mangrove forest in the world. It is a delta of the two great Indian Rivers The Ganga and The Brahamputra .The whole area is the kingdom of the famous Royal Bengal Tigers.

The Sunderbans National Park is a tiger and biosphere reserve ,located in the southern West Bengal (India). The Sunderbans is named after the Sundari trees which are found in bulk in this area. It was established as a national park on 4th May 1984.It became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987. The most preferable time to visit this park is in the month of September and May. If you visit in winter months you could see on the river banks, the powerful Royal Bengal Tigers. Other wild life species present in this park are Macaques, Indian Grey Mongoose, Leopard Cats, Ridley Sea Turtle, Wild Boar, Jungle Cat, Fox, Flying Fox, Fishing Cats, Chital, Pangolin and a lot others. While on boat cruises, even though you are unaware, the big cat and saltwater crocodile observe you at all times, watching every step you make.

. There are two kinds of boats operated by the West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation, available in Sunderban, AC and Non-AC. Also, they come in two sizes, large and small, for longer and shorter sailing duration, respectively. The safaris range from a day, and if you can’t get enough of the wild beauty, you have the opportunity to book the boat for up to a week.

Boat Safari Timing: The boat service is available from early morning at 8:30 AM to the approaching dawn time of 16:00 PM.

Note: No boat is allowed inside Sunderban after 6.30 PM

The Sundarbans National Park. (VUFF-0091)(Also IOTA AS-153)

Activations:

Is spread over in the Gangetic Delta, with 54 islands. SAGAR and JAMBUDWIP islands were activated, so far, covering the Sundarbans.

SAGAR Is ( Ganga Sagar Mela ) (almost every year from 2000 in January)

VU2HFR, from 10-17 January,2000, other calls operated: VU2SKD,JSH,KFR

VU2HFR, from 12-15 January 2001, other calls operated: VU2KFR, JSH, SKD.

VU2HFR, from 10-16 January 2002. other calls operated: VU2KFR, JSH

VU2HFR, from 10-17 January,2005, other calls operated: VU2SKD,JSH,KFR

8T5MQT, from 09-16 January, 2015.Other calls operated: AU2MQT, AU2WBR, VU2DPM, EWS, HFR, KFR, JSH, SKD. QSL to VU2NRO.

AU2WBR, from 01 January -31 March 2018, other calls operated: VU2MQT

8T2G, from 10-17,January, 2020, QSL to VU2NRO.

JAMBUDWIP Is (Expedition dedicated to Dipu Da VU2DPD (SK))

AU3SNP, from 28-31 December 2013, other calls operated: VU2GMT, MDG, VU3ARF, SJR, WNN