Posted by sharad on 09th July, 2016.
Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve is one of the most famous National Parks in India, located in the Umaria district of Madhya Pradesh. It derives its name from the most prominent hillock of the area- a legend says that it was gifted by Lord Rama to his brother Laxmana to keep a watch on Lanka. Infact, Bandhavgarh is a Sanskrit word which actually means ‘Brother’s Fort’.
Bandhavgarh is a park with a historical past. Although, no one has ever found evidence as to when the fort was built, but there have been references spotted for as long as 2000 years old. Bandhavgarh Fort has references in ancient scriptures like ‘Shiv Purana’ which add to its authenticity and the historical glamour. History even tells us that when Maharaja Vikramaditya shifted his capital to Rewa, Bandhavgarh fell into the hands of the Mughals for a short duration. There are 39 caves in the Bandhavgarh fort and the surrounding hillocks, which have Brahmi inscriptions and embossed figures of various animals that supports the historical context of this fort.
Before being declared as a National Park, the forests around Bandhavgarh were maintained as a ‘Shikargah’ or game preserve, of the Maharajas and their guests. As a very interesting fact, Maharaja Martand Singh of Rewa captured the first White tiger in this region in 1951. Bandhavgarh having a large biodiversity helped the case of hunting for Maharaja’s. However, the wildlife had to be protected and the biodiversity to be preserved. To bring this into force, ‘Project Tiger’ and ‘Wildlife Protection Act’ were constituted in 1972.
With time, the authorities realized that protecting only the prime habitat of Bandhavgarh National Park, consisting of 105 km2 was not enough. Three more ranges, i.e. Khitauli, Magdhi and Kallawah, became a part of the Talla range in 1982, measuring the area under the National Park to be 448 km2. As Project Tiger grew rapidly in its activities and influence, it took Bandhavgarh into its folds in 1993 and a core area of 694 km2 was established incorporating the three before ranges. To this area, a buffer area of 437 km2 along with Panpatha Sanctuary was added and all combined declared as the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve.
Bandhavgarh is home to famous tigers which are large in size and beautiful to look at. Tala is known as the richest zone in biodiversity, mainly tigers. The Tiger standing at the top of the food chain, the National Park has 37 species of mammals. According to forest authorities, there are 250 species of birds, about 80 species of butterflies and a number of reptiles. The richness of the park calls on the pairs of sarus cranes to breed in the monsoon season.
The biggest attraction of the Park are tigers, according to a survey in 2012, there were 44-49 tigers living in the Park. There is a popular saying about the park, “In any other Park, you are lucky if you see a Tiger. In Bandhavgarh , you are unlucky if you do not see (at least) one”.