Parks.it - Parks, Reserves, and Other Protected Areas in India

Parks, Reserves, and Other Protected Areas in

India

States and Territories

Andaman & Nicobar Islands
Andhara Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh
Assam
Bihar
Chandigarh
Chattisgarh
Dadra & Nagar Haveli
Daman & Diu
Goa
Gujarat
Haryana
Himachal Pradesh
Jammu Kashmir
Jharkhand
Karnataka
Kerala
Lakshadweep
Madhya Pradesh
Maharashtra
Manipur
Meghalaya
Mizoram
Nagaland
New Delhi
Orissa
Punjab
Pondichery
Rajasthan
Sikkim
Tamil Nadu
Tripura
Uttaranchal
Uttar Pradesh
West Bengal

Info

Protected Areas in India
To disseminate information on Wildlife and Protected Areas, Wildlife Institute of India was included as the 23rd Environmental Information System Centre in India, with the focal theme "Wildlife and Protected Areas" in September 1997 by the MoEF, India (Ministry of Environment and Forests). This Centre deals with general matters concerning "Wildlife" and specifically those related to "Protected Areas".
The ongoing World Bank assisted program of the ENVIS aims at providing a comprehensive environmental information database under the identified subject areas, local conditions and issues pertaining to the environment of the country.

National Parks
There are 95 existing national parks in India covering an area of 38,024.10 km2, which is 1.16% of the geographical area of the country (National Wildlife Database, October 2005). In addition to the above, 74 national parks covering an area of 16,630.08 km2 are proposed in the Protected Area Network Report (Rodgers et al. 2002). The network of parks will go up 169 after full implementation of the above report. Maximum number of parks exist in size class less 100-500 km2 and there are 7 parks having more than 5,000 km2.

Wildlife Sanctuaries
There are 500 existing wildlife sanctuaries in India covering an area of 117,913.45 km2, which is 3.59% of the geographical area of the country (National Wildlife Database, October 2005). Another 217 sanctuaries are proposed in the Protected Area Network Report covering an area of 16,669.44 km2. Maximum number of sanctuaries exist in size class less than 10 km2 and there are only 2 sanctuaries having more than 5,000 km2. The network of sanctuaries will go up 717 after full implementation of the above-mentioned report (Rodgers et al, 2002).

Project Tiger
Project Tiger was launched by the Government of India in the year 1973 to save the endangered species of tiger in the country. Starting from nine reserves in 1973-74 the number is grown up to twenty-nine in 2006. A total area of 38,620 km2 is covered by these project tiger areas, which is 1.17% of the total geographical area of the country.

Biosphere Reserves
The programme of Biosphere Reserve was initiated under the "Man & Biosphere" (MAB) programme by UNESCO in 1971. The purpose of the formation of the biosphere reserve is to conserve in situ all forms of life, along with its support system, in its totality, so that it could serve as a referral system for monitoring and evaluating changes in natural ecosystems. The first biosphere reserve of the world was established in 1979, since then the network of biosphere reserves has increased to 425 in 95 countries across the world (MAB, 2003). Presently, there are 14 existing biosphere reserves in India.

Source: Wildlife Institute of India - ENVIS, Wildlife and Protected Areas