subject: Corbett Park -best Accommodation Option Inside-corbett Park [print this page] Corbett Park or Jim Corbett National Park named after British hunter Jim Corbett was the first national park in India. At the time of its creation in August 1936, the park was named as Hailey National Park, which was renamed as Ramganga National Park in 1954-55 and again as Corbett National Park in 1955-56. Project Tiger, a government undertaking aimed at saving India's dwindling tiger population, was launched here in 1973.
With the addition of 798 sq km of buffer zone in 1991, it became Corbett Tiger Reserve. This collective entity commonly known just as Corbett Park has an area of 1319 sq km covering a valley between the Lesser Himalaya in the north and the Shivaliks in the south. It is spread along the catchments of rivers Kosi in the east and Ramganga in west in Nainital district of the state of Uttarakhand and has a sub-Himalayan belt structure. The park acts as a protected area for the endangered Bengal tiger of India, the secure survival of which is the main objective of Project Tiger.
Corbett Tiger Reserve is not only a prime tiger sanctuary in India it is one of the 13 reserves protected by World Wildlife Fund. Located at five hours drive from Delhi, it is the most famous park in India because of its biological diversity and proximity to Himalayas and captures the imagination of global wildlife lovers with its diverse wildlife and breathtaking landscapes. The landscape is made of dense moist deciduous forest consisting mainly of Sal forests and bamboo trees and is blessed with an abundance of wildlife, including tigers, leopards, wild elephants, boars, black bears, sambar, four-horned antelope (chausingha), monkeys, pythons and the endangered gharial crocodile. Overall, this prime tiger sanctuary shelters 350 species of mammals, 2000 species and subspecies of birds, 500 species of amphibians, reptiles and fish, 110 species of trees and 51 species of shrubs.
Corbett's many water bodies are a birder's delight and make Corbett one of the richest birding and wildlife paradise of India. Though the main focus is protection of wildlife, the reserve management has also encouraged ecotourism. Tourism activity is only allowed in selected areas of Corbett Tiger Reserve so that people get an opportunity to see its splendid landscape and the diverse wildlife.
While the activity of ecotourism is leading to the significant economic and social development of this whole area, in addition to being an important source of revenue for the local government, this activity has caused problems in terms of noise pollution, littering and disturbances to the wild habitat in general. A careful balance between economic activities on one hand and wild life protection at the other is therefore quite important and if managed carefully can be a great example of the great symbiotic relationship between man and nature.
