Come and Explore Chhattisgarh’s Wild Side

The thing with most of us who are reading this right now is, we are probably sitting somewhere in an AC room, browsing through our daily feed of articles, memes and other social media updates, who will quickly move on from all of it, and then return tomorrow to repeat the same exercise. Which is why we always chase that dream of leaving it all behind, packing our bags - but we don’t really end up doing it because traveling to exotic places is not cheap and long holidays are not easy for us nine-to-fivers. But what if someone told you the wild and exotic places you’ve been searching for are just a few hours away, where you don’t even need to worry about passport or Visa issues? We are talking about the almost untapped potential of wildlife tourism in Chhattisgarh.

Did you know a whopping 44.21% of Chhattisgarh’s land mass is just forests? That is why it is no surprise that the state has 3 national parks and 11 wildlife sanctuaries. In simple words, if you’re into wildlife or have a passion for wildlife photography, Chhattisgarh is paradise for you. Let’s take a look at some of the best highlights this state’s wildlife extravaganza has to offer.

Achanakmar Tiger Reserve

Situated a mere 60 km away from Bilaspur, the scenic 914 sq. km Achanakmar Tiger Reserve in Chhattisgarh is mix of tropical moist deciduous and tropical dry deciduous plant life. The reserve is also a part of the much larger Achanakmar-Amarkantak Biosphere Reserve. Sal, bija, saja, haldu, teak, tinsa, dhawara, lendia, khamar and bamboo thrive here along with over 600 species of medicinal plants. All in all, a great place to get your kids along for the ride if they want to experience nature up front instead of reading about these in their books. The meandering Maniyari river that flows right through the heart of the reserve is its lifeline. Wild fauna found here includes the tiger, leopard, bison, flying squirrel, Indian giant squirrel, chinkara, wild dog, hyena, sambar, chital and over 150 species of birds. Even a short trek through this park easily reveals its extraordinary beauty and biodiversity.

Barnawapara Wildlife Sanctuary

This small wildlife sanctuary covering an area of 245 sq. km in the Mahasamund district of Chhattisgarh is known for its lush green forest cover and a sizeable population of the common Leopard. It is the state’s second most visited wildlife sanctuary, established in 1976 under the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972. The thick vegetation here mostly comprises teak, sal and bamboo, and supports diverse wildlife such as tigers, sloth bears, jackals, leopards, four-horned antelopes, striped hyenas, chinkara, barking deer, porcupine, gaur, muntjac, and bison. Yes, this does read like the setting of The Jungle Book, except here in Barnawapara, it’s all real. While the sanctuary does not have any resident tiger population, if you’re lucky, you can spot a few as the predators migrate from one patch of forest to another, sometimes even across state lines.

Indravati National Park

Indravati National Park is located in Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh. It derives its name from the Indravati River which flows through it. It is one of the most well-known tiger reserves in India and is also home to one of the last members of the rare wild Asian buffalo population. Indravati became a national park in 1975 and a tiger reserve in 1983 under the Project Tiger of India.

Kanger Valley National Park

Kanger Ghati National Park is around 20 km from Jagdalpur in the Bastar plateau of Chhattisgarh. It covers an area of 200 sq. km. It was declared as a national park in 1982 owing to the diverse range of plant and animal life found here. The dense jungles of Kanger house many animals like jackals, rhesus macaque, tiger, leopard, striped hyena, monitor lizards, pythons and so on. It also has numerous species of aviatory fauna and is mainly famous for Bastar Hill Myna. If bird watching is your passion you cannot in any way miss out on the Kanger Valley experience. The reason why this relatively smaller area supports a phenomenally wide range of animal life is because the region has a very diverse habitat, comprising of thick trees, marshy lands, grasslands and hilly regions.

Badalkhol Wildlife Sanctuary

Badalkhol Wildlife Sanctuary in Chhattisgarh in India is open most part of the year however the best time to visit is November to June. You get to come face to face with various species of deer here - chinkara, gazelle and the spotted deer. As far as other animals are concerned, you can also witness species of nilgai, sambar, chausingha, sloth bear, wild boar, jackal and hyena as you make your way across the sanctuary.

Semarsot Wildlife Sanctuary

This one’s really special because even though you can see the regular species of animals that are normal in Chhattisgarh, like deer, sambar, wild boar, etc. here, this is one of the few places in India where you can come across the elusive chevrotain, sometimes known as the mouse deer, a tiny, cat-sized nocturnal mammal that looks like a mix of deer, pig and mouse.

Sitanadi Wildlife Sanctuary

Aside from the other usual animals, Sitanadi, located in the Dhamtari District, is perfect if you’re a bird watcher. A wide variety of birds have their winter home at Sitanadi, including herons, egrets, parrots, drongos, pheasants, barbets and many more.

Nandanvan Jungle Safari

While the aforementioned places are mostly natural areas with somewhat demarcated boundaries, the Nandanvan Jungle Safari is a man-made safari targeting people who want to experience Chhattisgarh’s fauna while riding through a specific route. In fact, it is Asia’s largest man-made safari. The entire 800-acre area of the Nandanvan Jungle Safari is lush green, with scenic landscapes. Several indigenous plant species also add to the vegetation, creating a natural habitat of sorts for the animals. It has a 130-acre water body named ‘Khandwa Reservoir’ which attracts many migratory bird species. Four safaris namely, herbivore, bear, tiger & lion safari has been established since Nandanvan opened to the public. While the experience of traveling in a moving cage might make you feel weird initially, if you think of it, this is much better than seeing animals in zoos like people do in most other cities across the world.

From the perspective of tiger conservation, Chhattisgarh’s vast wild reserves offer a potential that can very well rival those of more famous parks like Jim Corbett in UP. Being part of the central Indian forest land, these areas have large swathes of untouched, virgin forests, and hence very less abiotic pressure that is perfect for sustaining different species of animal and plant life. Now, in the past few decades as the number of tigers in India dwindled, governments and forest authorities are waking up to the idea that Chhattisgarh could very well be the missing piece of the solution that is needed to hike up the population of this beautiful mammal. Let’s hope that in the next 30 years, Chhattisgarh is leading the way in the preservation of tigers and other rare species of animals.