Kanha National Park or Kanha Tiger Reserve is one of the wildlife sanctuaries of India and the largest national park of Madhya Pradesh, state in the heart of India. The present Kanha sanctuary is segregated into two sanctuaries, Hallon and Banjar, of 250 and 300 km2 respectively. Kanha National Park was created on 1 June 1955 and in 1973 was made the Kanha Tiger Reserve. Today it sprawls over an area of 940 square kilometres in the two districts Mandla and Balaghat of Madhya Pradesh.
The national park has a sound population of the Royal Bengal tiger, the sloth bear, Indian leopards, barasingha and Indian wild dog. The forest of Kanha is also depicted in the famous novel by Rudyard Kipling; The Jungle Book is based on jungles including this reserve. As before 19th century, the entire area was being governed by the Gond dynasty since many centuries and the Kanha Forest was little known since the slash and burn cultivation methods of both the Baiga and Gond tribes were being dominated at that area. They had good knowledge of the animals and their behaviours. It marks an important year during 19th century in the history of the Kanha National Park when the first forest management rules were instituted and cutting of various tree species like Sal, Teak, Saja, Shisham and Bija without official authorization were prohibited.
Kanha National Park, popularly called Kanha Tiger Reserve, is enriched with diverse flora and fauna, including, of course, the iconic tiger. It is the largest national park of Madhya Pradesh and forms a well-known destination for tourist attractions. Nature enthusiasts from all over the country desire to explore the diverse wildlife of Kanha National Park. This vast dwelling ground for diverse wildlife is also one of India's most prominent tiger reserves. Kanha National Park covers an area of 1945 sq. km. This includes the Maikal Hills and buffer zones surrounding them. Kanha Tiger Reserve consists of grasslands and forests with elevated plateaus. It is renowned for being the first tiger reserve in India to have a mascot – Bhoorsingh, the Barasingha. Besides tigers, the grasslands are also home to jackals and wild pigs. Birds of prey are inhabitants of the Bamni Dadar Plateau. Sondar Tank, Babathenga Tank and the Kanha Museum are among the watering holes in the tiger reserve.
The species is still on the vulnerable list after numbers fell drastically in the mid-20th century. Human encroachment on their habitat, poaching, and disease all led to the decline. There were only about 60 individuals left in the national park when the conservation program started in the early 1970s.
The Barasingha hard-ground swamp deer (Branderi Barasingha) is the state animal of Madhya Pradesh in Central India. It was very close to extinction when a successful breeding program and conservation practices at Kanha National Park brought the animals back from the brink.
Various conservation methods were used, including habitat improvement and captive breeding, and today there’s an estimated 450 Barasingha in Kanha. Today, you can see herds of 10 to 20 strong roaming the fields and meadows of this large and beautiful national park and tiger reserve.
Nearest airport is Jabalpur. Jabalpur Airport to Kanha National Park approximate distance is 161 Kms and takes 4 hours approximately by road.
The Nearest Railway Stations for accessing Kanha National Park is Gondia & Jabalpur. Gondia railway station is 145kms / 03:00 hrs drive from Kanha (Khatia Entrance Gate). Jabalpur railway station is 160kms / 04:00 hrs drive from Kanha (Mukki Entrance Gate)
