Wildlife in West Bengal : Sunderbans National Park and Tiger Reserve - 17

Sunderbans National Park and Tiger Reserve is located in the Ganga delta in West Bengal, spanning the Hooghly in the west and Teulia river in the east, Sunderbans was declared a National Park in 1984. The Park covers a vast stretch of mangrove swamp, lush forested islands and small rivers near the Bay of Bengal. Most of the region comprises estuarine mangrove forests and swamps which support an ecosystem specially adapted to great salinity.

Sunderbans is home to the magnificent Royal Bengal tiger, the park holding more tigers than any other tiger reserve. More than 400 tigers were recorded during the mid-1980s. Project Tiger has also launched a programme to protect the Olive Ridley sea turtles. Crocodiles and the Gangetic dolphin are to be found aplenty in the Raimgangal river. The Sajnekhali sanctuary, famous for its rich avian population, is regarded as a part of the Sunderbans National Park.

To visit Project Tiger area including Sajnekhali Bird Sanctuary permission is to be obtained from Tourism Centre, Government of West Bengal, 3/2, B.B.D. Bag (East), Kolkata - 700 001. Tel. No. : (033) 2488271

The other related places of interest are Bhagatpur Crocodile Project (2.5 hours from Namkhana), Lothian Island, Holdiay Island (3 hours from Sajnekhali), Kalas, Sagar Island (2.5 hours from Namkhana) and Jamudwip (3.5 hours from Namkhana).

When to visit: September to May

Where to stay :

Forest Lodge and forest resthosues are available for accommodation at Sajnekhali.

How to get there:

By Air: Dum Dum (166 kms.), is the nearest airport at Kolkata.

By Rail: The nearest rail head is at Canning, 48 kms. away

The nearest town in Gosaba, 50 kms away

Contact :

Field Director, Sunderbans Tiger Reserve, P.O. Canning, District 24 Parganas (South), West Bengal.

Related Links :

01. Nature and WildLife of India : WildLife Protection Act 1972 - 1
02. Wildlife in Jammu and Kashmir - 2
03. Corbett National Park (Project Tiger) : Wildlife in Uttaranchal - 3
04. Rajaji National Park - 4
05. Wildlife in Uttar Pradesh : Dudhwa National Park - 5
06. Wildlife in Rajasthan : Bharatpur National Park - 6
07. Wildlife in Rajasthan : Ranthambore National Park (Project Tiger) - 7
08. Wildlife in Rajasthan : Sariska Tiger Reserve - 8
09. Wildlife in Gujarat : Gir National Park and Sanctuary - 9
10. Wild Ass Sanctuary - 10
11. Wildlife in Madhya Pradesh : Bandhavgarh National Park - 11
12. Wildlife in Madhya Pradesh : Kanha National Park - 12
13. Wildlife in Bihar : Rajgir Wildlife Sanctuary - 13
14. Wildlife in Jharkhand : Hazaribagh Wildlife Sanctuary - 14
15. Wildlife in Jharkhand : Palmau Tiger Reserve - 15
16. Wildlife in Jharkhand : Topchanchi Wildlife Sanctuary - 16