National
Parks in India
Wildlife
Conservation in Kanha 
Kanha
National Park is one of the first nine, Tiger Reserve constituted in our
country when "Project Tiger" was initially launched way back in
1973. There present Park area encompasses two important valleys vix the
Banjar and the Halon. In 1935, these valley forests were declared
Sanctuaries Subsequently, the Banjar valley alone retained that Sanctuaries
status till the up gradation as a National park in 1955. the initial area of
the National Park was 253 sq. km. km, which with subsequent extensions in
1964and 1970 assumed a size of 446 sq. km. With the launched of Project
Tiger in 1973, the Halon valley area was eventually integrated with the
Park, thereby increasing the total area to the present size of 940 sq. km..
Kanha tiger Reserve is constituted on a "
core-buffer"
strategy. The entire National Park area of 940 sq. km. km. is visualised as
a "core zone", free from biotic. Disturbances of any sort. A
Buffer zone of 1005 sq. km. km. surrounding the core is treated as a
multiple use area. The buffer zone comprises almost 40 percent forest area
and the rest is costiuted by revenue land this zone has been notified by the
state Government as a separate division and is under the unified controls of
the management.
The Reserve is a part of the Gonndwana tract
inhabited traditionally and chiefly by the Gong and Baiga tribes. The
villagers had free access to cut and burn the forest at will. The system of
shifting cultivation, locally called "Bewar" prevailed almost
unhindered until 1870 on the hill slopes. Unrestricted grazing was permitted
up to 1915, when grazing rules were introduced.