Achanakmar National Park

Achanakmar National Park

Achanakmar National Park and Achanakmar Wildlife Sanctuary is situated in region of madhya pradesh district of india .Wildlifes  are gaur , crane , bear , bluethroat and eagle etc .

Animals: Tiger and leopard are the main carnivorous animals found in the sanctuary. The other animals are chausingha, sambhar, gaur, walking deer, anguor, monkey, wild boar, bear and the golden dog

Achanakmar National Park

  Birds: The birds which inhabit the sanctuary are peacock, parrot, myna, Indian coucal, kingfisher, vulture, bluethroat, eagle, jungle babblers, nightjar, pheasant and crane.

The forest has been categorised as a ‘Northern Tropical Moist Deciduous Forest’ with the following trees present: sal, saja, dhavda, tinsa, haldu, tendu, gooseberry, jamum, bel, karra and bamboo. 

There are 25 forest villages within the core of the WLS of which 75% are of the Baiga community and the remaining are from the Gond community with a small number of Yadavs. The total population of these forest villages is 1774.

 Brief History of the Baiga Community

The Baiga Chak region is located in the Mailkal hills of the Satpura mountain range and is spread over the districts of Shahdol, Mandla, Balaghat, Bilaspur and Kawardha. In 2001 when the Chhattisgarh state was carved from Madhya Pradesh, this region was divided between the 2 states with the first 3 districts remaining with Madhya Pradesh and the last 2 going to Chhattisgarh. The Baiga adivasis (categorised as Primitive Tribal Group) have lived in this region for centuries and consider themselves the protectors of the forests. Historically, they have had little connections with the people living in the plains. According to a special survey conducted by the Tribal Research Institute, Bhopal in 1992 – 93, the total Baiga population recorded was 1,34,357.

The lifestyle of the Baiga community is deeply connected with the forests wherein they practice agriculture without the use of the plough and grow 12 different kinds of crops using this method. They practice shifting agriculture, where they cultivate one piece of land for 3 years and then move to the next patch, allowing for forest regeneration. It was during the British rule when the forests were declared the property of the State that the community was pushed to poverty. To facilitate the cutting of forests for timber, the British brought the Baigas from the highlands to the foot of the hills and settled them in forest villages.

Tourism Development

While on the one hand people who have lived in the forests for centuries both living off the minor produce and protecting and regenerating the forests are being displaced in a brutal manner, on the other hand, the forest department in collaboration with the Chhattisgarh Tourism Board is developing tourism infrastructure like cottages, roads etc.

At Avrapani, which is in the list of villages to be displaced in the second phase, and where people are being harassed by the forest department, such tourism development is evident. The villagers of Avrapani also shared that several people from the city come and hunt illegally in the forests. Clearly the forest department is hand in glove in this, since no hunting can take place in the forests without the knowledge and implicit support of the forest department. Yet, when the adivasis go into the forests to collect firewood and other produce, they are falsely booked under the Forest Protection Act just to intimidate them. 

Achanakmar National Park and Achanakmar Wildlife Sanctuary is situated in region of madhya pradesh district of india.