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Parambikulam Tiger Reserve

Coordinates: 10°23′0″N 76°42′30″E / 10.38333°N 76.70833°E / 10.38333; 76.70833
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Parambikulam Tiger Reserve
IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area)
Parambikulam Tiger Reserve
Map showing the location of Parambikulam Tiger Reserve
Map showing the location of Parambikulam Tiger Reserve
Map showing the location of Parambikulam Tiger Reserve
Map showing the location of Parambikulam Tiger Reserve
LocationPalakkad District, Kerala, India and Thrissur District, Kerala, India
Nearest cityPalakkad (90 km)[1]
Coordinates10°23′0″N 76°42′30″E / 10.38333°N 76.70833°E / 10.38333; 76.70833
Area643.66 square kilometres (248.52 sq mi)
Established2009
Visitors100000 (in 2019)
Governing bodyKerala Forest Dept.
Vysak Sasikumar IFS, Deputy Director (Project Tiger)
Websitewww.parambikulam.org

Parambikulam Tiger Reserve, which also includes the erstwhile Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary, is a 643.66 square kilometres (248.5 sq mi)[2] protected area lying in Palakkad district and Thrissur district of Kerala state, South India. The Wildlife Sanctuary, which had an area of 285 square kilometres (110 sq mi) was established in part in 1973 and 1984. It is in the Sungam range of hills between the Anaimalai Hills and Nelliampathy Hills.[3][4][5] Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary was declared as part of the Parambikulam Tiger Reserve on 19 February 2010.[6][7][8] Including the buffer zone, the tiger reserve has a span of 643.66 km2. The Western Ghats, Anamalai Sub-Cluster, including all of Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary, has been declared by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee as a World Heritage Site.[9] The Tiger Reserve is the home of four different tribes of indigenous peoples including the Kadar, Malasar tribe, Muduvar and Mala Malasar settled in six colonies. Parambikulam Tiger Reserve implements the Project Tiger scheme along with various other programs of the Government of India and the Government of Kerala. The operational aspects of administering a tiger reserve is as per the scheme laid down by the National Tiger Conservation Authority. People from tribal colonies inside the reserve are engaged as guides for treks and safaris, and are provided employment through various eco-tourism initiatives.[10][11] Parambikulam Tiger Reserve is among the top-ten best managed Tiger Reserve in India.[12] The tiger reserve hosts many capacity building training programmes conducted by Parambikulam Tiger Conservation Foundation in association with various organisations.[13]

Geography

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The sanctuary is located between Longitude:76° 35’- 76° 50’ E, and Latitude:10° 20’ – 10° 26’ N. It is 135 kilometres (84 mi) from Palakkad town and adjacent to the Annamalai Wildlife Sanctuary to the east in Tamil Nadu. It is bordered to the north by Nemmara Forest Division, to the south by Vazhachal Forest Division and the west by Chalakudy Forest Division. The sanctuary has a hornblende, biotite, gneiss and charnockite geology.

Altitude ranges between 300 m and 1438 m. There is a 600 m elevation opening through the Nelliampathy hills from Anamalai hills on the northern boundary of the sanctuary at Thoothampara. Major peaks in the sanctuary are Karimala Gopuram (1438 m) in the southern boundary of the sanctuary, Pandaravarai (1290 m) in the north, Kuchimudi, Vengoli Malai (1120 m) in the eastern boundary and Puliyarapadam (1010 m) in the west.

The sanctuary has three man-made reservoirs; Parambikulam, Thunacadavu (Thunakkadavu) and Peruvaripallam, with a combined area of 20.66 km2. The Thuvaiar water falls empty into one of the reservoirs. There are 7 major valleys and 3 major rivers, the Parambikulam, the Sholayar and the Thekkedy. The Karappara river and Kuriarkutty river also drain the area.

History

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The tiger reserve has remnants of the Cochin State Forest Tramway, which was used to ship wood from the Parambikulam forests to the nearby harbor at Kochi, and from there to different locations of the world.

Fauna

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Indian gaur (Bos gaurus) at Prarambikulam.

The sanctuary has a rich biodiversity of animal life including mammals (39 species), amphibians (16 sp.), birds (268 sp.), reptiles (61 sp.), fishes (47 sp.) and invertebrates (over 1,200 species). Parambikulam is referred to as the "state capital for the massive gaur" by wildlife experts.[14]

Flora

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Kannimara Teak

The sanctuary has a variety of trees mainly teak, neem, sandalwood and rosewood. Even the oldest ever teak tree, Kannimara Teak exists here. It is about 450 years old and has a girth of 6.8 metres (22 ft) and a height of 49.5 metres (162 ft). It won the Mahavriksha Puraskar given by the Indian Government. Haplothismia exannulata is a rare species of mycotrophic plant found in this area.[18]

Threats

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Do-Not-Feed-Animals Signage at Parambikulam Tiger Reserve
Information signage at Parambikulam Tiger Reserve indicating the prohibition of liquor and plastic.

Fires in the forest - In April 2007 a wild fire in parts of Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary and the adjoining Nelliampathy forests destroyed hundreds of acres of forest tracts and plantations. One of the reasons for the fires was the lack of pre-monsoon rain in the area. The area used to get rain in during January, February, March and April. In 2007, there was only 4 mm rain in January and after that there was no rain. Nelliampathy was facing an unprecedented drought during that summer. The temperature reached 34 °C in April when the average high is usually 26 °C.[19]

Waste generation due to tourist visit - Some tourists throw away plastic material, aluminium cans, biscuit wrappers etc. inside the reserve, instead of putting them in waste bins. The staff of the tiger reserve engage in picking up these waste materials on a daily basis. Some of these plastic waste are recycled to make keychains, which are sold at the ecoshops located inside the tiger reserve. These key-chains are referred to as "Pugmark keychains".

Demand for expanding the tourism zone - There is pressure from multiple quarters to expand the tourism activities that is currently conducted in the buffer zone of the tiger reserve. This also results in demand for building new roads inside the tiger reserve, which is not an ecologically friendly option.[20][21]

Quarrying in nearby areas - Demand for construction material such as granite has resulted in the destruction of hills and hillocks in the peripheral regions such as Nelliyampathy. A ban on quarrying has been sought in regions such as Muthalamada, Chuliar and Seetharkund.[22]

Sustainability Practices

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As part of a study to ascertain the visitor management strategy at Parambikulam, a study report by KFRI in 2002 indicated limited tourism with community participation.[23] While questions has been raised about the effectiveness of Eco-Development-Committees (EDCs) in promoting sustainable development at Parambikulam prior to its declaration as a Tiger Reserve[24] after establishment of Parambikulam Tiger Reserve and the Parambikulam Tiger Conservation Foundation, there has also been significant indications that the local community has benefited ed[25] The tiger reserve strives towards ecotourism initiatives that cause minimum harm to the environment. The tiger reserve also promotes the usage of solar energy.

Awards and Accolades

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  • NatWest Group, Earth Heroes Award, Earth Guardian Award[26]
  • CA|TS Accreditation,[27] which is a global recognition for the management effectiveness.[28]
  • Award for Community Participation in Ecotourism during the Third Asia Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation[29]

Notes

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  1. ^ "Map", GMap
  2. ^ "Parambikulam Tiger Reserve".
  3. ^ Parambikkulam Forest Development Agency.official website
  4. ^ Wildlife Institute of India, "State/UT Wise Details of Protected Areas" ENVIS Archived 2007-08-13 at archive.today
  5. ^ T R Shankar Raman, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore Rediscovery of the Oriental Bay-Owl Archived 20 July 2006 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ staff (20 February 2010), "Parambikulam Tiger Reserve opened", The Hindu, archived from the original on 3 January 2013, retrieved 19 January 2011
  7. ^ "Parambikulam Tiger Reserve to be inaugurated on Feb. 17". The Hindu. Palakkad. 24 November 2009. Retrieved 24 November 2009.
  8. ^ "Parambikkulam likely to become a tiger reserve soon". The Hindu. 3 October 2007. Archived from the original on 3 January 2013. Retrieved 2 September 2008.
  9. ^ "Western Ghats".
  10. ^ "These tribal guides 'shoot' for a change". The Hindu. 2 July 2015. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
  11. ^ "Where tigers, tribes coexist". The Hindu. 29 July 2015. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
  12. ^ "Parambikulam Tiger Reserve | Official Website of Parambikulam Tiger Reserve". www.parambikulam.org. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  13. ^ "Enforcement agencies gear up to fight wildlife crime in Kerala". www.wwfindia.org. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  14. ^ "Parambikulam – Subaltern Sanctuary To Sanctum Sanctorum". www.sanctuaryasia.com. Retrieved 11 August 2015.
  15. ^ "Checklist of Fish Fauna" (PDF). Parambikulam Tiger Reserve. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 December 2014. Retrieved 29 November 2014.
  16. ^ Kerala Information & Public Relations Department, PARAMBIKULAM WILDLIFE SANCTUARY, retrieved 5/11/2007 PARAMBIKULAM WILDLIFE SANCTUARY Archived 10 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  17. ^ "Parambikulam Tiger Reserve | Official Website of Parambikulam Tiger Reserve | Online Bookings for Accomodations, Jungle Safari, Trekking Programs, Nature Camps | Buy Parambikulam Honey | Wild Honey". www.parambikulam.org. Archived from the original on 7 July 2007.
  18. ^ "Indian Association for Angiosperm Taxonomy" (PDF). www.iaat.org.in.
  19. ^ Prabhakaran G. (4/9/2007) Fire engulfs Parambikulam, Nelliampathy forests, The Hindu, retrieved 6/12/2007 Fire
  20. ^ "Travel News - KFRI opposes plan for motorable road from Nelliyampathy to Parambikulam Tiger Reserve | TravelBiz Monitor". www.travelbizmonitor.com. Retrieved 5 August 2015.
  21. ^ "Greens oppose tourism in Nelliampathy forest". The Hindu. 22 April 2010. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 5 August 2015.
  22. ^ "A green concern over Nelliampathy - Indian24News". Haber Yayınları. Retrieved 20 October 2015.[permanent dead link]
  23. ^ KFRI Research Report No. 239, Visitor Management Strategy for Eravikulam National Park, Parambikulam and Neyyar Wildlife Sanctuaries, KFRI, July 2002
  24. ^ Dejouhanet, Lucie (2010). "Participatory eco-development in question: The case of the Parambikulam wildlife sanctuary in South India". Journal of Alpine Research.
  25. ^ Vinodan, A; Manalel, James (July 2011). "Local Economic Benefits of Ecotourism: A Case Study on Parambikulam Tiger Reserve in Kerala, India". South Asian Journal of Tourism and Heritage.
  26. ^ "Parambikulam Tiger Conservation Foundation wins Earth Guardian Award". www.thehindubusinessline.com. 21 October 2021. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  27. ^ Tiger Conservation moef.gov.in August 2021
  28. ^ "Global Recognition for 14 Indian Tiger Reserves". www.outlookindia.com. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
  29. ^ ""Need to consider Tigers as natural capital, define conservation as a means to achieve development": Prime Minister". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
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