Betla National Park

Location :Latehar district, Jharkhand
Coverage area : 232 sq. Kms.
Main attraction : Tigers?
Best time to visit :November to April
Nearby excursions :
Nearby cities :Daltonganj

Situated in the district of Daltonganj, Palamau Sanctuary is spread over an area of 979sq.km,Betla National Park was declared a wildlife sanctuary in 1973. Betla? is an acronym of the following words- Bison, Elephant, Tiger, Leopard, and Axis-axis and the Chota Nagpur Plateau of the Latehar District, that is where the National Park is located was set up as the Palamau Tiger Reserve in the year of 1974. The core area of 232 sq. kms of the sanctuary was declared as Betla National park in September 1989 and was constituted in the year 1960 as an extension of the Hazaribagh National park. The park became one of the many first 9 tiger reserves in India under 'Project Tiger' in 1974. Moreover, this park finds its mention for being the world's first tiger census was enumerated in 1932.

The undulating terrain of the park is marked with important hills like the Murhu, Netarhat, Huluk and Gulgul. Luxuriant

Sal and ranges of bamboo forests give the place a very cinematic look.
The park supports a wealth of biodiversity and the diversity of eco-system promotes their easy co-existence. Described as one of the finest parks in the north-east for observing a variety of wild life from close range, the government arranges for group travels with drivers and guides.

The presence of two historical forts within the national park is also an added attraction. Total area of the park is about 226.33 sq km and the present area of the reserve got duly constituted either as Protected Forest or Reserved Forest under the Indian Forest Act, 1927 back in 1947. Starting from Kechki and extending up to Neterhat, there are some villages inside the reserve and is entirely of tribal community.River Koel and its tributaries pass through the northern portion of the park and help to maintain the diverse eco-system of the park.

Climatic conditions

Climatic conditions are generally pleasant all through the year. Although the winter months, that is from November to February might see a drop in the temperature ranging from -5?C to 10?C, the summers can see an equally high weather with about 37?C. The monsoon months vary from June to September and are not a great time to go around the forest.

Best time to visitBetla National Park

Summer-time is the ideal for spotting wildlife specially tigers. But being in the tropical zone, the summers are specifically hot, thus if you cannot withstand the humid and hot temperature, the perfect time to visit will be between November to April.

Animals that inhabit the sanctuary

The fauna

In this wildlife extravaganza, visitors can easily spot tigers and elephants. The other dominant mammals of the region consist of:

Bison, Leopard, Barking deer, Mouse deer, Panther, Wild boar, Dhole, Pangolin, Four-horned antelope, Chital, Sloth bear, Mongoose, Jackals, Sambar, Nilgai, Langur, Eating pangolin, Hyenas etc.

Jeep Safari Tours are organized by the State Tourism Department which is the most thrilling way to sight the wildlife.

Birds

The avian fauna at Betla includes hornbill, crested-serpent eagle, forest owlets, peafowl, whistling teal, papeeha, white-necked storks, pied hornbill, comb duck, snipe, geese, red jungle fowl and more. The Kamaldah Lake attracts a number of these magnificent birds and sometimes varieties of migratory birds can also be sighted.

Vegetation

Sal trees cover the most of the terrain of Betla and make up most of the dry deciduous forests. Otherwise, the forests of the park have a vast range of vegetation which is marked by tropical wet evergreen forests in the lower range, mixed deciduous forests in the middle and temperate alpine forests at the higher altitudes. Interestingly, there are a huge number of medicinal plants spotted in this region.

Distance of Betla National Park from major cities:

Daltonganj, 24 km
Ranchi, 174 km
Bihar, 259 km
Kolkata, 589 km
Lucknow, 598 km
New Delhi , 1073 km

How to reach the National park ?

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Airways

Ranchi airport is the closest air route where tourists can fly off to and get transfers in buses and private cars. It is about 140km from the airport.

Railways

Daltonganj, Gaya, Barwadih and Ranchi railway station are the close railheads where visitors can drop by. These stations are well connected with express trains to Delhi and Kolkata.Daltonganj is the closest and is about 34 km from the park.

Roadways

Buses run by the state government of Jharkhand. The road conditions are well maintained hence it is often one of the preferred choices to have a long ride to this Park from the nearby cities. There are private vehicles available for transfers from various nearby cities. The national park can be reached through KhudiaMorh (6 km), Hazaribagh (about 190 km), Patna (about 384 km), and Kolkata (about 575 km).

Accommodation facilities

There are some proper accommodation facilities at Betla but the best place to stay is at the Tourist Lodge which is just inside the entrance gate. Kerh and Maromar have sophisticated private stay options. There are three star hotel, log huts, tourist lodges with canteen, and tree houses located inside the forest which also have fully furnished suites. A hotel run by the Jharkand state tourism development is also there for tourists but should be booked in advance.

Things to do

Betla features waterfalls and natural hot springs which also interesting places to visit. The historical monuments include a 16th century fort of Chero kings and is one of the must see attractions near the National Park. It is called the old Palamau fort. Other attractions include: