VALMIKI TIGER RESERVE

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Picture Courtesy: https://hindi.news18.com/news/bihar/west-champaran-valmiki-tiger-reserve-tourist-season-starting-from-1-of-november-this-year-bramk-4730825.html 

Context: Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR) utilised rainwater harvesting and artificial waterhole creation to reduce wildlife conflicts caused by water scarcity while also improving conservation efforts and community interactions.

About Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR)

• Valmiki National Park located in Bihar's West Champaran District, is the state's only national park.
• It shares a boundary with Nepal's Chitwan National Park to the north and Uttar Pradesh to the west.
• The forest area, formerly known as Bhainsa Lotan, was once owned by the Bettiah Raj and Ramanagar Raj until the early 1950s. Later, it was declared a Wildlife Sanctuary in 1978 and eventually established as Valmiki National Park in 1990.
• Cliffs, ridges, gorges, hills, streams, valleys, dense woods, open woodlands, grasslands, marshes, and riverine fringes all contribute to the park's varied scenery.
• It is located in the Gangetic Plains biogeographic zone, which includes both the Bhabar and Terai tracts.
• It is home to a diverse range of wildlife, including the Bengal tiger, Indian rhinoceros, Asiatic elephant, Asiatic black bear, Indian leopard, wild dog, wild water buffalo, and numerous deer, langurs, monkeys, and birds. The tiger population in the reserve has increased significantly over the years.
• The park has a wide variety of flora types divided into several forest types, which range from Bhabar-Dun Sal Forest to Wetlands. It is home to many tree species, including Sal, Karam, Asan, Bahera, Asidh, Simal, Satsal, Piyar, Mandar, Banjan, Bhelwa, Harra, Bodera, and Chir Pine. The grasslands are ornamented with plants such as munj, Kans, Elephant grass, Narkat, Vitiveria zizanioides, and Imperata cylindrica.
• The dominant Tharu community, along with other scheduled tribes like Oraon, Munda, Lohra, and Bhuiya, live in the region. Festivals like Rama Navami are celebrated by the Tharu people, who maintain cultural ties with the Tharus of Nepal.