RAJAJI AND JIM CORBETT NATIONAL PARK

Subject : Environment

Context : The Rajaji Tiger Reserve is set to welcome the first big cat from Jim Corbett Tiger Reserve on Thursday, in the first such relocation in Uttarakhand aimed at tiger population management.

Concept :

Rajaji National Park

• It is nestled between the Shivalik ranges and the Indo-Gangetic plains.
• Broadleaved deciduous forests, riverine vegetation, scrubland, grasslands and pine forests form the range of flora in this park.
• The park is spread over three districts of Uttarakhand: Haridwar, Dehradun and PauriGarhwal.
• The Ganga and Song rivers flow through the park.
• It is at the northwestern limit of distribution for both elephants and tigers in India and has the largest population of elephants in Uttarakhand.
• The Park is also home to the Great Pied Hornbill, Himalayan Pied Kingfisher and the fire tailed sunbird.
• This area is the first staging ground after the migratory birds cross over the Himalayas into the Indian subcontinent.
• In 2015, Rajaji National Park was notified as a tiger reserve by the central government. Benefits of Tiger Reserve – Protected area for Tigers, Tourist attraction, Huge Development fund for the Park, Eco-Tourism development.

Jim Corbett National Park  

• Corbett National Park, also called Jim Corbett National Park, natural area in southern Uttarakhand state, northern India.
• It was established as Hailey National Park in 1936 and it is India’s oldest national park.
• The park is located in the foothills of the Himalayas—about 35 miles (50 km) northwest of Ramnagar.
• It mainly occupies the broad Patlidoon Valley, through which the Ramganga River flows in a westerly direction.
• The forest cover includes species of sal (Shorea), teak, oak, silver fir, spruce, cypress, birch, and bamboo. A reed forest was planted to afford natural cover for the park’s animals.
• The park was established mainly for the protection of the Bengal tiger (Pantheratigristigris); it is there that India’s Project Tiger was established in 1973 to provide havens for tigers in the country’s national parks.