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Manas Wildlife Sanctuary, Assam
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Location |
Assam |
Speciality |
Tigers |
Airport |
Guwhati
176 kms. |
Railhead |
Barpeta
40 kms. |
Accomodation |
Within
the sanctuary |
Best
Time To Visit |
October
to April |
This lovely area is formed from the watershed
of the Manas, Hakua and beki rivers and borders with Bhutan.
The bungalows at Mothanguri, on the banks of the Manas, offer
views of jungle-clad hills. Established trails enter nearby
forests and follow the riverbanks. Try to arrange a boat cruise.
Besides tiger, the grassland is home to wild buffalo, elephant,
sambar, swamp deer and other wildlife; the rare and the beautiful
golden langur may be seen on the Bhutan side of the Manas.
The only tiger reserve in Assam and famous for the rare golden
langur, Manas national park is one of the best kept national
parks in the country. Manas national park is located on the
banks of the river Manas in the foothills of Bhutan. Far from
the human habitation this park has a unique charm of its own.
Manas is a very special biosphere, for it harbors twenty species
of birds and animals that are highly endangered and listed
in the IUCN red data book.
Among the highly endangered species are the attractive Red
Pandas which are occasionally in the higher elevation. Initially
the park was a wild life sanctuary but in 1990 it was declared
a national park. Today Manas national park spreads over an
area of 2840 sq kms. But the core area is just 360 sq km.
This park is well known as one of the world heritage sites
having its unique combination of scenic beauty and rare wealth
of wildlife.
The park has eastern Himalayan moist mixed deciduous forests
covering. The lush green park is densely covered by trees
and growth which often prevents the sunrays from entering
the forest. The eastern alluvial grassland also covers a major
portion of the national park. These grassland are grazing
grounds for many herbivores. Manas also shows variety by mixing
low alluvial saranah wood land and Assam valley semi evergreen
forests.
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Park
Population :
Being a tiger reserve Manas is famous for tigers. The other
exclusive specie is the pygmy hog. The park harbors about
20 species of animals. the range varies from Herbivores to
omnivores. The animals include panther, clouded leopard, marbal
cat and other variety of cats. Elephant, Rhino, swamp deer,
sambar, barking & hog deer, dhole, binturong, otter, bison,
buffalo, golden langur, spotted deers are some of the animals
who roam the jungles.
There are numerous species of feathered beings nest in the
park. The reserve also receives many visitors from all over
the world who come during the winters and fly back on the
onset of summers. Along the river one can spot many water
birds like mergansers, brahminy ducks and a range of egrets.
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Park Trips :
The park can be entered on elephant back or in a jeep or by
car. These trips give you good opportunity to observe the
wildlife in their natural habitat. The ride on elephant is
both exciting and pleasurable.
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Climate :
The climate of Manas park is tropical. the Summers are hot
and winters cold. Take cotton cloths for summers and do not
forget to pack woolens during winters. The average rainfall
is 160 cms. But the monsoon months bring heavy downpours which
often flood the park.
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Best Time to Visit :
The best season to visit Manas park is between October to
April. Rest of the year it is off season for the park. Avoid
monsoons as many parts of the park is flooded and animals
are not easy to spot.
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Accommodation :
There are two lodges maintained and run by the tourism department.
These lodges provide good and comfortable accommodation near
the park. One of lodge is located at Barpeta Road and other
is at Bansbari. The state department has two bungalows at
Mathanguri inside the forest. There is no catering services
at these bungalows and lodges so visitors have to carry their
own food stuff. But there are cooks at the bungalows who cook
food for the tourists. These chefs are provided by the forest
department.
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Getting There :
Manas national park is 176 km from Guwahati from where is
easier to drive than to take any other transport. For Manas
the nearest airport is Borjhar airport, Guwahati. This airport
is connected with flights from other cities. The nearest railhead
is Barpeta road. This station is 136 km from Guwahati. Manas
is well connected with other cities and towns in the state
by network of roads. There are regular bus services operated
by state transport as well as the private operators. One can
also hire taxis for the park from Guwahati.
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