Kali Tiger Reserve (Kannada: ಕಾಳಿ ಹುಲಿ ಸಂರಕ್ಷಿತ ಪ್ರದೇಶ; formerly Anshi National Park) is a protected area and tiger reserve. It is located in Uttara Kannada district, in Karnataka, India. The park is a habitat of Bengal tigers, black panthers and Indian elephants, amongst other distinctive fauna. The Kali River flows through the tiger reserve and is the lifeline of the ecosystem and hence the name. The tiger reserve is spread over an area of 1300 square kilometres.
History
The forest in the area was declared the Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary on 10 May 1956. The state proposed carving out a section of the sanctuary to form the Anshi national park, which was implemented on 2 September 1987.[1] The initial proposal covered 250 square kilometres. When the final notification of the park area was issued in 2002, it was extended by another 90 square kilometres.
It was renamed to Kali Tiger Reserve in December 2015. The park is home to several hydroelectric dams and a nuclear power station.[2]
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Renaming of Anshi Tiger Reserve
It is notable that Anshi National Park and Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary were together granted the status of Project Tigertiger reserve, being declared as 'Anshi Dandeli Tiger Reserve' in January, 2007.[3] The 340 km2 (130 sq mi) Anshi park adjoins the Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary, and together with six adjacent protected areas in the states of Goa and Maharashtra, forms an almost uninterrupted protected forest area of over 2,200 km2 (850 sq mi).
In December 2015, Dandeli Anshi Tiger reserve was renamed to Kali Tiger Reserve (JOIDA).[4] The river Kali is the lifeline of the people of Uttara Kannada district and integrates Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary (DWS) spread across 400 km2 and Anshi National Park (ANP) spread across 500 km2. The river cuts across the whole park and the renaming has given the area a single identity. The change of name was also to bring focus and awareness to Kali River. The name change was prompted following a universal response from policymakers after the release of the movie Kali[5][6] which brought to importance the role of Kali River to the ecosystem.
Geography
Located in the Western Ghats range from 14°54' to 15°07' N latitude and 74°16' to 74°30' E longitude, Kali Tiger Reserve's elevation varies from 27–1,059 m (89–3,474 ft) above MSL. Despite high rainfall in this area, water holes go dry very early in the summer because the soil is laterite, with minimal water-holding capacity.[7]
Park management
The management of National parks and sanctuaries in the state is the responsibility of the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife). Kali Tiger Reserve is headed by the Director of the Park who is also the Chief Conservator of Forests.
The best months to visit are October to May. The park is open from 6:00 am to 6:00 pm. The nature camp at Kulgi has accommodations available in tents (two beds each), deluxe tents (two beds each), and a dormitory with 16 beds. The climate is quite humid year around. The usual plans are visiting the Bird Trail, Mammal trail in Kulgi which is a 3-km walk. The water sports like Jacuzzi, boating, rafting, and canoeing can be planned in the river Kali, and trekking the extremely beautiful Dudhsagar waterfalls by a 20-km trek is also available.
Also note many roads within Anshi national park ( Kali Tiger Reserve )are closed to vehicular traffic from evening 6 P.M to morning 6 A.M like Kulgi to Bhagavathi via Ambikanagar, Anmod to Hemmadaga and Ulavi to Potoli. Also many dams are built across river Kali which criss crosses within tiger reserve.
Signboards are written in Kannada the state language and English.
Dandeli is the nearby town adjoining sanctuaries which has daily bus services to Dharwad, Hubballi, Belagavi and Bengaluru.Visiting the eco interests in Goa is optional. The local vegetarian food is served.[11]
