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1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 AVAILABILITY OF WATER FOR WILDLIFE

Water is a universal solvent for each human being and all the creatures in this
planet. Wildlife traditionally refers to non domesticated animal species. It has major
impact on the environment both positive and negative. Wildlife is found in all ecosystems
such as deserts, forests, plains, grasslands and other areas.
Today, the population of wildlife creatures is under tremendous pressure due to
lack of water sources. Wildlife needs sources of clean water for the purpose of drinking,
bathing and reproduction. There are mainly two kinds of water sources viz. natural
sources and man made (artificial) sources. Natural sources include ponds, lakes, rivers,
springs, oceans and wetlands while man made sources include installed ponds or rain
gardens or watertanks or watersheds.

1.2 PROBLEMS AFTER FEBRUARY

Drought is the root cause of wildlife death, accidents, hunting, poaching and
migrating from one place to another. Drought problem arises with the beginning of
March or after the February end. In summer many ponds, lakes, rivers and other sources
get dry due to changes in climate, hot weather and high temperature.

1.3 CROSS BOUNDARY

Boundary is nothing but the fencing around the forest by which no wild animal
can run or go across this limit. But due to effect of climatic changes and summer season,
wild animal crosses this boundary for searching required habitat such as food, water,
shelter and other things. But search of water is the root cause of crossing boundary.
Wildlife animal crosses the boundary under following circumstances.
if the water in summer season becomes scarce and is available at few places only.
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if there are no waterholes or limited number of waterholes within the protected area.
if the leaf fall starts, lot of litter collects in the open waterholes which gets mixed in
the water and makes it dirty.

1.4 POACHING

Poaching literally means illegally hurt, catch or kill the animals. Poaching is a big
business in day to day life. Because of water problems or other habitat problems, wild
animals in the park cross boundary and migrate from one place to another place and
become the victim of poaching. There are many reasons of poaching such as hides, skins
meat and some parts of animals are used for food, clothes, jewellery and trophies.
However some poachers kill animals just for the entertainment and for hunting. Various
types of medicinal uses and black marketing of organs of animals such as bones and
ivory are responsible for poaching. Whenever any species is found to be alone in search
of water, it makes the hurty suffered by poachers.

1.5 ACCIDENTS

Accident is the cause of unexpected incidents which results in death or any
serious kind of injury partly or permanently to the health. The prime cause of reducing
number of population of wild animal is accident which is due to straying of animal on the
road and migrating in search of water. Animals in search of water run simultaneously
onto the road and cannot predict the behaviour of one another.
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Deer died in search of water at Gosabit Lambatola under Temni, Amgaon
Fig.1
Most of the artificial reservoirs and ponds in the forest get dry which makes the animal to
migrate in search of water. A spotted deer that strayed out of the park in Gosabit
Lambatola under Temni, Amgaon, apparently in search of water, was chased and killed
by stray dogs on Monday, 31
st
March, 2014.

1.6 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
Analysis of the current scenario of availability of water for wild animals in the
Navegaon National Park.
Assessment of different watershed categories using contour map and drainage map of
the protected area by visual interpretation technique.
Selection of watershed lands of Navegaon National Park.
To study the applicability of different methods for improving water availability in the
Protected Area.
To arrive at an economically or otherwise feasible method of watershed management
for the selected region.
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To control illicit poaching by watersheds near the periphery of the National Park and
construct check dams at appropriate locations.
Creation of new artificial waterholes within protected area.
Strengthening of existing waterholes.
Create a good distribution of perennial water sources to tide over the pinch period.

1.7 METHODOLOGY
Assessment of different watershed categories at Navegaon National Park using
contour map and drainage map of the protected area by visual interpretation
technique.
The assessment criteria are based on the important factors for evaluation of sites for
watershed management at Navegaon National Park such as:
Selection of watershed lands of Navegaon National Park Wildlife and creation of
database for decision support system of Watershed Development Programme of
Navegaon National Park.
Analysis of Drainage & Surface Water bodies Map of Navegaon National Park.
Analysis of Land use/Land cover of Navegaon National Park.








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2. LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 WATERSHED

A watershed may be considered to be the area of land that drains into a specified
body of water. Let us think of it this way: choose a body of water we're familiar with,
perhaps a local stream. Now think of where the water in the stream comes from.
Although there are many ways for water to enter a stream, much of it will enter as run-off
from the land. This land is what forms the stream's watershed. Now think of where the
stream goes. If it runs into a river, the original stream and its watershed are part of the
river's watershed. So we can see that small watersheds make up larger watersheds, which
form even larger watersheds, and so on. Because water runs down hill, watersheds are
defined by natural boundaries. One watershed ends and another begins at the highest
point between the two bodies of water.
All lands on earth are part of one watershed or other. Watershed is thus the land
and water area, which contributes runoff to a common point. Watershed is considered as
a biological, physical, economic and social system too. Viewed in another angle,
watershed is a natural unit of land, which collects water and drains through a common
point by a system of drains. Hence it comprises of a Catchment area (Recharge Zone), a
Command area (Transition Zone) and a Delta area (Discharge Zone). Therefore
watershed is the area encompassing the catchment, command and delta area of a stream.
The topmost portion of the watershed is known as the ridge and a line joining the ridge
portions along the boundary of the watershed is called a ridgeline. A watershed is thus
a logical unit for planning optimal development of its soil, water and biomass resources.
Essentially, a watershed is a topographically delineated area that is drained by a
stream system, i.e. the total land area that is drained to some point on a lake, stream or
river. The term watershed, catchment area or drainage basin, are used synonymously. The
watershed size may vary from a few square meters to thousands of square kilometers.


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2.2 TYPES OF WATERSHED

Watersheds can be classified into a number of groups depending upon the mode
of classification. The common modes of categorization are the size, drainage, shape and
land use pattern.
The usually accepted five levels of watershed delineation based on geographical area
of the watershed are the following:
1) Macro watershed (Area larger than 50,000 hectares)
2) Sub-watershed (Area between 10,000 & 50,000 hectares)
3) Milli-watershed (Area between 1000 & 10000 hectares)
4) Micro watershed (Area between 100 & 1000 hectares)
5) Mini watershed (Area smaller than 100 hectares)

A watershed could be described as fan shaped (near circular) or fen shaped
(elongated). Hydrologically the shape of the watershed is important because it controls
the time taken for the runoff to concentrate at the outlet. Watersheds may also be
categorized as hilly or flat watersheds, humid or arid watersheds, red soil watershed or
black soil watershed based on criteria like slope, climate, soil etc. Depending on the land
use pattern watershed could again be classified as highland watersheds, tribal settlements
and watersheds in areas of settled cultivation.

2.3 WATERSHED MANAGEMENT

It is high time to understand that in order to attain water prosperity for our land
the adoption of watershed management practices is a must. The resource trinity - land,
water and biomass are the crucial factors in watershed management. Water cannot
understand the manmade development units. Incomplete and improper management of
the resources trinity has a cumulative effect leading to degradation of environment, low
productivity, low income and lack of sustainability in development. Thus watershed is
accepted to be the natural home for managing the resource trinity - land, water and
biomass in a sustainable manner.
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Generally, watershed management implies the wise use of soil, water and
vegetation of a watershed to get optimum production with minimum hazards to the
natural resources of the concerned area. Hence watershed management is a continuous
process, which should be revised from time to time with new elements, so as to counter
both man-made (construction, mining, logging, farming, etc.) and natural events (floods,
landslides, wildfire, etc.).
Watershed management has emerged as a new paradigm for planning,
development and management of land, water and biomass resources with a focus on
social and environmental aspects following a participatory approach. Watershed
Management is more a philosophy of comprehensive integrated approach to natural
resources management. It aims at integration of social resource management with natural
resource management. The approach is generally preventive, progressive, corrective and
curative. Watershed management involves the judicious use of natural resource with
active participation of institutions, organizations, in harmony with the ecosystem. The
three main components in watershed management are land management, water
management and biomass management.

2.3.1 LAND MANAGEMENT

Land characteristics like terrain, slope, formation, depth, texture, moisture,
infiltration rate and soil capability are the major determinants of land management
activities in a watershed.
The broad category of land management interventions can be as follows:
i) Structural Measures
ii) Vegetative Measures
iii) Production Measures
iv) Protection Measures
Mechanical conservation measures may become necessary in watershed
management in the initial stages. Structural measures include interventions like contour
bunds, stone bunds, earthen bunds, graded bunds, compartmental bunds, contour
trenches, bench terracing, field bunds, stream bank stabilization, check dams etc.
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Watersheds may contain natural ecosystems like grasslands, wetlands,
mangroves, marshes, water bodies. All these ecosystems have a specific role in nature.
Vegetative measures include vegetative cover, plant cover, mulching, vegetative hedges,
grass land management, vettiver fencing, agro-forestry, etc.
The production measures include interventions aimed at increasing the
productivity of land like mixed cropping, strip cropping, cover cropping, crop rotations,
cultivation of shrubs and herbs, contour cultivation, conservation tillage, land leveling,
use of improved variety of seeds, horticulture, etc.
Protective measures like landslide control, gully plugging, runoff collection, etc
can also be adopted. Adoption of the interventions mentioned above should be done
strictly in accordance with the characteristics of the land taken for management.

2.3.2 WATER MANAGEMENT

Water characteristics like inflows (precipitation, surface water inflow, ground
water inflow), water use (evaporation, evapotrasnpiration, irrigation, drinking water),
outflows (surface water outflow, groundwater out flow), storage (surface storage, ground
water storage, root zone storage) are the principal factors to be taken care of in
sustainable water management.
The broad interventions for water management are listed below:
i) Rain Water Harvesting
ii) Ground Water Recharge
iii) Maintenance of Water Balance
iv) Preventing Water Pollution
v) Economic use of water

Water harvesting is the process of collecting, conveying and storing water from
an area that has been treated to increase the runoff of rainwater or snowmelt. The
simplest method of water harvesting is to collect and store natural flow from a watershed.
The storage can be in tanks, reservoirs; or one can allow the collected water to percolate
into soil so that it can be used later as groundwater. Essentially, any watershed
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management programs include appropriate water harvesting measures suitable to the
watershed.
Rainwater harvesting forms the major component of water management. The
rainwater collected can be recharged into the ground. Roof top water harvesting,
diversion of perennial springs and streams into storage structures, farm ponds etc are the
methods widely used for rainwater harvesting.
Some simple and cost effective rainwater harvesting structures are the following:
i) Percolation pits/tanks
ii) Recharge trenches/rain pits
iii) Recharge wells
iv) Farm ponds
v) Bench terracing
Economic use of water and avoidance of affluence in use of water at individual
and community levels may be the major concern for water management in the years to
come.

2.3.3 BIOMASS MANAGEMENT

Major intervention areas for biomassmanagement are indicated below:
i) Eco-preservation
ii) Biomass Regeneration
iii)Forest Management & Conservation
iv)Plant Protection & Social Forestry
v) Increased Productivity of Animals
vi) Income & Employment Generation Activities
vii) Coordination of Health & Sanitation Programmes
viii) Better Living Standards for People
ix) Co-friendly life style of people
x) Formation of a learning Community


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2.4 PEOPLES PARTICIPATION

Peoples participation and collective action are critical ingredients for watershed
management. Sustainability, equity and participation are the three basic elements of
participatory watershed management. Sustainability involves conservation and
enhancement of the primary productivity of the ecosystem, the main components of
which are land, water and biomass. Equity has to be seen in terms of creating an equitable
access to livelihood resources for the watershed community. Participatory watershed
management attempts at ensuring sustainability of the ecological, economic and social
exchanges taking place in the watershed territory. This includes natural resource
exchange, (which is the conventional watershed management), and additionally considers
the economic, political and cultural exchanges.
At this juncture it may be advisable to understand the limitations of peoples
participation in any development project. Participation may lead to delayed start and slow
progress in the initial stages of the programme. We may require more resources because
in the participatory process we have to move along the path decided by the local people.
Since participation is an empowering process where the people are empowered to make
decisions, donors, governments, and other players have to relinquish power and control.
Relinquishing power and control is not an easy task for the bureaucracy. Increased
expectation due to involvement of the local people may not always be accomplished.
However the advantages of peoples participation are many and sound.
Participation can ensure effective utilization of available resources. In real terms
community participation means voluntary sharing by the user groups their time, energy
and money on the programme and adopt the recommended measures and practices on a
sustained basis.
The concept of people's participation is endorsed by the views of Dr. Rajendra
Singh. He maintains, Its far cheaper to help villages create and control their own water
supplies than to build more gargantuan dams and ditches. With his inspiration, River
Parliaments and Paani Panchayats have come up in the villages of Alwar district of
Rajasthan to manage and maintain the revived water sources and to govern the
distribution of their water as well.
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2.5 SUSTAINABILITY

Sustainability of participatory watershed management can be highlighted under
three heads- socio cultural indicators, economic indicators and the environmental
/ecological indicators. The socio-cultural indicators deal with the social and cultural well
being of the watershed dwellers.

This includes the following:
i) Decision making power of the community
ii) Empowerment of women
iii) Formation of Village Groups/Self Help Groups
iv) Change in ownership of land
v) Improvement in quality of life
vi) Harmonious social life

The economic indicators of sustainability consist of factors required for livelihood
and economic wellbeing of the people, which consists of:
i) Increase in income levels
ii) Availability of food and food security
iii)Improvement in standard of living
iv)Off-farm income to families
v) Improvement in rural economy
vi)Improvements in credit and market supports.

The environmental indicators include factors influencing the ecology of the
community such as:
i) Increase in the productive potential of resource base
ii) Management of common property resources
iii) Improvement in bio-diversity.


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2.6 WATERSHED ASSESSMENT

Watershed assessments can be thought of like medical check-ups for patients.
People who are trained in what to look for will examine the watershed to see if it is
"healthy". If it isn't, they will determine what is making it "sick" and offer suggestions on
how to make it healthy again. Just as a doctor can't perform an evaluation on a person
without their permission, we cannot and will not force our way on anybody. In addition,
just as a doctor cannot force treatment on a patient, the assessment will not lead to any
regulatory action. Suggestions will be given for how to make the watershed healthier and
concerned landowners will choose whether or not to follow them. These suggestions are
likely to include things such as building passive treatment systems for establishing
vegetated zones along the stream banks to reduce erosion and sedimentation. These zones
are known as "riparian buffers" ("riparian" meaning "along the banks of a river" and
"buffer" meaning "a device used as a shield or cushion"). They work because the plants
reduce the amounts of pollutant that reach the river by slowing down water running off
the land, holding the soil with their roots, and absorbing nutrients that would otherwise
end up in the stream.
2.7 DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS OF CHECK DAMS
Check dams can be made of a variety of materials. They are most commonly
made of rock, timber logs, sandbags, reinforced concrete either precast or castin-situ.
When using rock, the material diameter should be 2 to 15-inches. Logs should have a
diameter of six to eight-inches. Regardless of the material used, build the check dam
carefully to ensure its effectiveness. That is, do not simply dump the material into the
channel. That would be in appropriate, and it might actually increase erosion. A check
dam should not be more than three-feet high, and the center of the dam should be at least
six-inches lower than its edges. This design creates a weir effect that helps to channel
flows away from the banks and prevent further erosion. Dams can be made more stable
by implanting the material approximately six-inches into the sides and bottom of the
channel. When installing a series of check dams in a channel, install outlet stabilization
measures below the final dam in the series. Because this area is likely to be vulnerable to
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further erosion, the use of other stabilization measures like riprap or geotePxtile lining is
highly recommended.

2.8 TYPES OF CHECK DAM
2.8.1 TEMPORARY CHECK DAM

Temporary check dams are constructed by using locally excavated or imported
earth materials a (e.g. sand) either in their natural state or put in bags (sand or earth filled
bags) and stacked to act as a barrier across the waterway.



Temporary Check Dam
Fig.2

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2.8.2 SEMI - PERMANENT CHECK DAM

Semi permanent check dams are constructed by using more durable materials
such as stones and rocks. The stone and rocks used can either be in loose form or stacked
to the required height and size of check dam. Normally a layer of impermeable sheet is
incorporated within the stone or rock embankment to reduce the seepage losses through
the structure.

Semi Permanent Check Dam
Fig.3



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2.8.3 PERMANENT CHECK DAM

Permanent check dam are constructed by using durable materials such as
reinforced concrete, whether cast-in-situ or pre cast. As concrete structures are relatively
very much more durable than other materials, it is envisaged that these structures can
easily last more than five years without any major repair required.


Permanent Check Dam
Fig.4


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3. ABOUT GONDIA DISTRICT
In ancient time, this region was ruled over by the 'Gond' kings. The rich dense
forest reflects in the culture of Gond people. Main business of that time was to collect
'lakh'from 'Plash' tree and 'Gum' from 'Babul' tree. Gum is called as 'Gond' in Hindi,
hence the name. (Russell R. V., Bhandara District Gazetteer, 1908)




Location map of Gondia district of Maharashtra
Map 1

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3.1 LOCATION

Gondia district lies at latitudes 20.39 to 21.38 North and longitudes 79.27 to 80.42
east. The adjoining districts to Gondia are Balaghat district of Madhya Pradeshon
northern side and Rajnandgaon district of Chhattisgarh stateon eastern side. To the south
and west are Chandrapur district and Bhandara district of Maharashtra.
The district headquarter is situated at Gondia located on Mumbai- Kolkata
railway route which is 961 km from Mumbai, capital of state and 1003 km from Kolkata.

MAP OF GONDIA DISTRICT OF MAHARASHTRA
Map of Gondia district of Maharashtra
Map 2
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3.2 IMPORTANT PLACES IN THE DISTRICT INCLUDE
1. Navegaon Bandh: 65 km south of Gondia in Arjuni Moregaon Taluka is a National
Park.
2. Nagzira: 30 km south of Gondia in Sadak Arjuni Taluka is a Wildlife Sanctuary.
3. Birsi Airport: 15 km north of Gondia.
4. Adani Power Plant: 30 km from Gondia at Tirora taluka.
This is an underdeveloped district and most of the land is covered with forest.
Paddy is the main agriculture produce. The other agriculture produce in the district are
Jowar, Linseed, Wheat and Tur. The main profession of local people is farming. There is
no large scale industry in the district due to which it is economically backward. There are
many rice mills in the district as paddy is the main agriculture produce here. Gondia city
is popularly known as RICE CITY due to large number of rice mills.
3.3 CLIMATE & RAINFALL
Gondia experiences extreme variations in temperature with very hot summers and
very cold winters and it has an average relative humidity of 62 percent. It also records
average rainfall more than 1200 mm each year in rainy season.


Average temperature at gondia district
Fig.5
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During month of May daytime average temperatures will generally reach highs of
around 42C. At night the average minimum temperature drops down to around 28C. In
recent times the highest recorded temperature in May has been 48C, with the lowest
recorded temperature 20C. During the period of December end / January temperatures
will generally reach highs of around 29C. At night the average minimum temperature
drops down to around 13C. In recent times the highest recorded temperature in January
has been 38C, with the lowest recorded temperature 0C.
Gondia district receives rainfall from South - West winds mainly in the months of June,
July, August and September. July and August are the months during which the maximum
precipitation as well as maximum continuous rainfall occurs.
The following table shows, taluka - wise average rainfall statement for the last 6
years.

Sr.
No.
Name of Taluka Average Rainfall During Last 6 Years (in mm)
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
1 Gondia 1551.6 933.1 1227.6 1049.0 1385.8 1667.8
2 Goregaon 1107.6 905.0 1299.4 1106.9 1225.0 1637.1
3 Tirora 1263.6 867.6 1320.8 1003.4 1113.2 1596.7
4 ArjuniMoregaon 1203.2 890.4 1954.2 1653.1 1235.8 1924.3
5 Deori 1051.9 870.0 1213.0 917.3 1089.0 1752.6
6 Amgaon 1352.3 845.0 1371.0 1274.0 1160.0 1734.5
7 Salekasa 1412.8 947.6 1384.5 1375.6 1281.0 1966.3
8 SadakArjuni 1373.4 1108.2 1819.3 1142.5 1384.8 2027.8
Total 10316.5 7366.9 11589.8 9521.8 9874.7 14307.1
Average 1289.5 920.8 1448.7 1190.2 1234.3 1788.39

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3.4 GEOMORPHOLOGY

Geomorphologically the district can be divided into two parts viz.
1. The north-western, north-eastern, south-eastern and central parts which have
structural units like hills and ridges.
2. The northern, north-central, west central, south and south-west portions having
undulating topography over denudational units like pediments and fluvial units.
The important geomorphologic units identified in the area are below:
Nature of Unit Land form
1. Structural origin Structural hills and structural ridges
2. Denudational origin Pediments/Pedi plains, denudational
3. Fluvial origin Older and younger alluvium.

3.5 GEOLOGY

Gondia district is unique in Maharashtra in sense that the entire area of the district
is occupied by metamorphic rock and alluvium.The brief description of various lithorites
is given below:
Age Formation Lithology
Pleistocene to Recent Alluvium and Laterite Silt, Sand, Gravel, Laterite
Protozoic Vindhyan Super Group Quartzite and Shale
Dongargarh Super Group Andesite, Sandstone granite,
Ehyolite
Sausar Group Muscovite-boitite-schist,
Granite, Tirodi Gneiss
Sakoli Group Schist, Phyllites, Quartzite
Archaean Amagon Group Granite & Gneisses


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Alluvium is developed all along major river courses such as Wainganga, Bagh,
Chulbandh, Gadhavi and Bawanthadi.
Laterites are distributed all over the district but observed prominently in Sadak Arjuni
and Arjuni Moregaon taluka.
Metamorphic rocks like various Granites, Gneisses, Schists, Phylites etc. are exposed
throughout district.
Gondia district is rich in economic minerals like Manganese, Kyonite, Sillimanite
Corundum and Pyrophyllite.
3.6 DEMOGRAPHICS

According to the 2011 census Gondia district has a population of 13,
22,331, roughly equal to the population of Mauritius. This gives it a ranking of 369
th
in
India (out of a total of 640). The district has a population density of 253 inhabitants per
square kilometer. Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was
10.13%. Gondia has a sex ratio of 996 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy
rate of 76.61%. Urban population makes around 17% of the total population, the
remaining 83% being the rural population.

3.7 DIVISIONS

The district is divided into 2 sub-divisions, Gondia and Deori which are further
divided into 8 talukas. Each sub-division consists of 4 talukas. The Gondia sub-division
consists of Gondia, Goregaon, Tirora and Arjuni Moregaon taluka while Deori sub-
division consists of Deori, Amgaon, Salekasa and Sadak Arjuni taluka.The district
comprises of 556 gram panchayats, 8 panchayat samitis and 954 revenue villages. Two
municipal councils in the district are at Gondia and Tirora.



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3.8 RIVERS AND DAMS

The Wainganga is the largest and most important river and it enters into district
through north east direction. Its total length in the district is 200 km. and it flows to the
south in the Chandrapur district. It has perennial flow. The rivers like Bagh, Chulbandh,
Panghodi, Gadhavi, Bawanthadi are the tributaries of river Wainganga.

Major dams within Gondia district are listed below:

Sr.N. Name of major
Dam
Location of Dam River on which
Dam is
constructed
Capacity
(cu.m.)
1. Itiyadoh Godhangaon - Tah.
ArjuniMoregaon
Gadhavi 318.85
2. Sirpur Sirpur TehsilDeori Bagh 193.0
3. Pujaritola Kothara
TahsilSalekasa
Bagh 49.0
4. Kalisarar Bijepar
TahsilSalekasa
Kalisarar 28.0
5. Bodalkasa Bodalkosa
TehsilTirora
Bodalkasa Tank 16.5
6. Chorkhamara Chorkhamara
TahsilTirora
Kothari 20.8
7. Chulbandh Chalbandh
TahsilGoregaon
Chulbandh 21.5





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4. NAVEGAON NATIONAL PARK

4.1 NAME AND LOCATION

Navegaon National Park is situated in Gondia district of Maharashtra State. It
forms part of Arjuni (Morgaon), Sadak-Arjuni & Deori Tahsils of the district. It lies
between 20
0
45 to 21
0
2 North latitude and 80
0
5 to 80
0
15 East longitude. It is
located in Nagpur Forest Circle and is surrounded by Pimpalgaon & Sakoli Forest
Ranges of Bhandara Forest Division and Rajoli, Chichgarh & Deori Forest Ranges of
Gondia Forest Division. The park itself is a separate range under Wild Life Division,
Gondia.

Location Map Of Navegaon National Park
Map 3
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4.2 CONSTITUTION AND EXTENT

The Government of India declared its intention to constitute the area as National
Park under section 35(1), (2) of wild life protection act 1972 (53 of 1972), notification
number PGS/1375/121758-F1 Dt.22
nd
November 1975. The area was earlier part of
Gondia Forest Division and was handed over to the wildlife wing vide Principal Chief
Conservator of Forests, M.S.Punes number Section/Wildlife/16 dt.17.4.84 from 1
st
May
1984.
The notification constituting the area as National Park under section 35 of
Wildlife (Protection) Act,1972 has been issued vide notification number WLP-10-
2000/CR-192/F-1, dated 21/12/2000 according to which presently the area of Navegaon
National Park is 129.55 sq.kms. In addition protected areas equal to 432,914 ha. of
villages Zankargondi, Kawalewada, Tumdimenda and Malkazari which are situated in
side the National Park is also given for management to the park authorities. Thus, the
total area for management comes to 133.88 sq. km. This area is divided into four rounds
viz. Paoni, Kokna, Kosbi & Nishani. The rounds are further divided into 13 beats.

4.3 SIGNIFICANCE

The National Park is about 55 kms. from Nagzira Wildlife Sanctuary which is in
the North-West direction. While on the eastern side there is contiguous forest area up to
the state boundary and beyond into the forests of Madhya Pradesh which forms a good
corridor for the movement of wildlife
Located in the eastern part of Maharashtra, Navegaon National park has great
importance from nature conservation point of view. It also forms the catchment of
number of tanks as well as Navegaon Bandh Tank and Itiyadoh Tank.
The forest type is Southern Tropical Dry Deciduous type. The area has special
habitats like caves, cliffs, thickets on the gentle to steep slopes of hills which varies
species of fauna. A large number of natural springs are also found in the area.
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The National Park is well known and more associated with the migratory birds
that visit the lake in winter. But inspite of having this knowledge till today except for
nominal efforts made in the past no concrete steps have been initiated for managing the
extensive wetland comprising of the Navegaon Lake which covers an area of 11 sq.kms.
Important fauna found in the area includes Tiger, Panther, Wild Dogs, Jackal and
Jungle Cat among the carnivores while the herbivores include Gaur, Sambar, Nilgai,
Barking Dear, Four Horned Antelope etc. The area is significant for presence of Gaur
which is found in large numbers in the park area. Recently a brown coloured sloth bear
was located unfortunately it was killed by electric current.
Bird species of the area include Red & Grey Jungle Fowls, Eagles, Wood-
Peckers, Hornbills, Pitta, Egrets, and Owls. Adjoining the protected area, the 11 sq. km.
expanse of Navegoan Lake attracts variety of migratory water birds. Terrapins, variety of
snakes and other herpites are also found in the Park area. The park area form major
catchment for the Itiyadoh medium irrigation project and Navegaon Lake.
Due to its location in central part of the country, the area has presence of both
Grey & Red Jungle Fowls, which are found in Southern and Northern India. Raptors like
Pallas Fishing Eagle, Grey Headed Fishing Eagle and Hodgsons Eagle etc. are also
found in the area. Pangolin, Flying Squirrel, Tiger are the important and endangered
mammal species which also have their abode in the park area. Slender Loris a primate has
been reported from area adjacent to the park. The presence of nesting colonies of the long
billed vulture and the white backed vulture in the adjoining hills and forest areas signifies
the uniqueness of the area and the necessity for protection.







26

























27

4.4 BACK GROUND INFORMATION AND ATTRIBUTES AND BOUNDARIES
4.4.1 EXTERNAL BOUNDARIES

The schedule to the notification gives the details of National Park boundaries as:
i) On the North:Kohamara, Duggipar, Mogra, Rajguda & Khadki.
ii) On the South: Jambdi, Rampuri, Yelodi, Kholi villages
iii) On the East: Mahasuli and Palasgaon.
iv) On theWest:Kosbi, Baki, Mendhki,Kokna,Kaneri,Khoba,
ParsodiPandharwani, RaitwariandPandarwanis

4.4.2 INTERNAL BOUNDARIES

As there is only one Range in the Park, the Range boundary is co-terminus with
the Park boundary. Area is divided into 4 rounds and 13 beats. The internal boundaries of
rounds and beats are of 3 meter width. Compartment being an administrative unit, its
boundaries are maintained as fire line with width of 3 meters.
There are five revenue villages inside the protected area. Out of these, one village
viz. Nishani is a deserted village and entire area of this village has been notified as new
reserved forests. In another village viz. Tumdimendha, there is no human habitation or
tilled agricultural land. Only three villages have human habitation agricultural / revenue
lands. The land in Malkazari village is well demarcated. While in case of Zankargondi
the demarcation is almost complete. In case of the remaining village viz. Kawlewada,
there are some problems. The village has two distinct settlements (i) Kawlewadatola and
(ii) Kalimatitola. Some area of this village is also notified as new Range Forest while
some area remains as revenue land.
The settlement report has been prepared by Sub Divisional officer, Sakoli and
submitted to the Government. As per this report, three villages viz. Kawlewada,
Zankargondi and Malkazari are to be resettled outside the Park area.

28

4.4.3 ECOLOGICAL BOUNDARIES

Ecological boundaries are difficult to identify, especially when the conservation
unit has contiguous adjoining forest areas. However, in case of Navegaon National Park,
the ecological boundaries are identified as under.
In the west, beyond the legal boundary of the National Park, human habitation is
more with many big villages. There are only 4 water tanks (used for irrigation) viz.
Parsodi, Khoba, Kokna & Baki. Wild animals usually visit these tanks for drinking water
in summer. This creates the possibility of these animals entering the village or damaging
agricultural crops beyond these tanks.
In the North beyond legal boundary of, is having forest area even beyond the
national highway number 6.
On Southern side the animals enter field of Jambhli, Yelodi and Rampuri village
up to Navegaon Lake. Hence the ecological boundary is up to the Navegaon Lake. The
present park area is quite small. There is continuous stretch of forest along the northern
and eastern boundaries of the park, which provides a good corridor and linkage with the
forest areas of Gondia Forest Division and also Chhatisgarh State. There is urgent need to
identify such areas and declare them as conservation reserve as per provisions contained
the amended Wildlife (Protection) Act, 2002

4.5 GEOLOGY ROCK AND SOIL

The National Park area is mostly undulated with low lying hills. The main hill
range is Nishani with a peak at about 702 m above meansea level (Nishani Peak).
Geologically, the park forms a part of Khairagarh group of Dongargarh super group
which is 90 kms wide & stretches NEESSW for more than 130 kms between Sakoli belt
and Chhattisgarh basin. The conservation unit area is represented by hills of Andesite and
ridges of Quartzite, while granite and sand stones form the low lying area.


29

4.5.1 MINERALISATION

The area of the park does not show any indication of major mineralisation.
Occasionally few speak of Pyrite and Chalco-Pyrite can be noticed in sand-stone and also
in basic volcanic. However, on the west side of village Zankargondi near main road, a 50
meters thick patch of iron-stone within the quartzite is seen and can be traced further
South to West Kondrezari hill.

4.5.2 SOIL

The Soil in the park is mainly lateritic. There are few patches of black cotton soil
also (eg. Kalimatitola). The soil depth varies from deep in the villages to shallow on
lower slopes and very shallow on the steep slopes. The texture of the soil is sandy to
sandy loam in plains and sandy to murramy on slopes and tends to be rocky on steep
slopes.

4.5.3 TERRAIN

As mentioned earlier, the Terrain is mostly undulating with low lying hills.
Nishani is the main hill range. Nishani peak on this hill is about 702 meters above mean
sea level and it is the highest point in the entire Gondia District. The main hill range is
located slightly right to the center of park area and there are other small hills on the
Western-Southern sides. The central hill range has slopes mostly towards East & West
with plateau on top.
On East these slopes give rise to many small nallas and streams while the Western
portion has comparatively less number of them. Four main water falls are located in the
park viz. Badbadya in compartment no. 221, Katethua in compartment no.9 and
Gobardoh on boundary of compartment no.711 and 716 and Ranidoh in compartment
no.710. Slopes are by and large gentle to steep with few very steep and rocky portions.
30

The streams are seasonal and dry up by end of January. The nalla beds are useful as fire-
breaks.
On the West, along the boundary of compartment no. 202 and compartment no. 4,
there is a pass between the Mendki-Pahadi & Kawlewada-Pahadi known as Chichghat
and a pass near Agezari Nalla with steep rocks on one side and a sloping hill on the other
is used for bamboo theft. The pass between Chindadevi-Pahadi and Satbahin-Tibba
abridged by Navegaon Bandh dam seat called JunaBandh is commonly used by illicit
fellers. Due to typical nature of the terrain, there are two roads, one running North-South
in Western potion of the park and another in the Eastern portion. But there is no road
connecting these two roads in northern portion inside the park and it is felt that two East-
West running roads are required one each in the Northern and South-central portion of
the park.

4.6 CLIMATE

There are three distinct seasons viz.
a) Winter season starts from the middle of October and lasts till middle of February.
b) Summer season starts from the middle of February and ends by middle of June.
c) Rainy season / Monsoon start from middle of June and lasts till middle of October.
Occasionally there are premonsoon showers in the month of May and June. Also
some times winter rains are received during October to December. In other seasons,
the weather is generally dry. Summer months are too hot but the winter weather is
cool and pleasant.

4.6.1 RAINFALL PATTERN AND DISTRIBUTION

The mean annual rainfall is 1100 mm. It varies between 600 mm and 1600
mm. More rainy days are in the month of July and August during which almost 80% of
the precipitation is received. In September and October months at a time showers are
received. Pre-monsoon showers are received during April to June.
31


4.6.2 WIND SPEEDS

The days are generally sunny round the year; though during rainy season the
sky is overcast with clouds for many days. Wind velocity data is not available; however,
wind velocity is maximum during July & August. In the summer months of April, May
and June wind velocity is least, with occasional stormy scenes, in afternoons.

4.6.3 TEMPERATURE

The mean annual temperature is about 34C maximum and 16C minimum. The
maximum temperature is in the summer months of May-June which goes as high as
47.2C. While the minimum temperature recorded is as low as 6.5C during winter, in the
month of December.
The diurnal variation in the temperature is minimum during JulySeptember. The
temperature during summer months of MayJune has great impact on the water
evaporation and vegetation in general.










32

STATEMENT SHOWING THE MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM TEMPERATURE
(MONTHLY AVERAGE) AT GONDIA.
Month Jan. Feb. March April May June
Year Max Min Max Min. Max Min. Max Min. Max Min. Max Min.
1993 28.7 13.4 33.6 15.2 34.0 19.0 39.4 23.8 46.2 27.8 38.4 27.6
1994 25.0 13.5 29.6 15.6 33.4 18.8 37.9 22.3 41.1 27.1 38.5 27.1
1995 28.3 13.1 33.0 16.7 38.4 21.3 41.4 23.6 41.3 27.4 39.6 26.3
1996 27.5 13.4 31.2 16.7 34.9 19.3 40.1 24.9 40.1 24.9 34.0 23.7
1997 27.6 13.1 29.7 15.3 38.8 17.7 39.4 24.3 39.4 24.3 32.0 24.1
1998 28.1 12.0 29.6 14.4 37.1 16.9 39.5 24.9 39.9 24.9 42.2 28.6
1999 29.3 14.1 30.9 16.9 36.4 20.5 42.4 26.7 42.4 26.7 37.9 28.3
2000 27.5 11.4 30.9 16.0 37.1 20.9 40.7 25.7 40.7 25.7 37.2 23.4
2001 26.6 11.3 29.5 15.7 34.8 22.2 41.3 25.3 43.3 29.4 37.9 27.3
2002 27.0 11.9 31.4 15.5 36.1 19.9 39.0 24.3 43.8 28.0 36.8 25.9
Av. 27.3 12.7 30.9 15.8 36.1 19.6 40.1 24.6 41.8 26.6 37.4 26.2
Month July August September October November December
Year Max Min Max Min. Max Min. Max Min. Max Min. Max Min.
1993 31.4 24.5 28.2 23.7 30.4 23.7 32.5 20.9 30.9 16.5 26.5 17.1
1994 31.1 24.3 29.6 23.3 32.7 24.5 32.5 20.9 30.0 17.7 28.0 15.4
1995 30.3 23.2 25.8 23.3 31.0 23.2 32.3 20.2 31.4 17.6 28.1 11.9
1996 31.1 23.0 30.2 23.2 30.9 23.0 32.7 21.0 29.5 14.1 27.7 10.2
1997 29.6 23.4 29.4 28.6 31.7 23.9 31.2 21.7 26.5 12.1 26.6 10.0
1998 31.7 24.7 29.4 23.4 32.0 23.4 32.2 20.2 29.5 16.4 28.6 14.5
1999 30.3 24.3 30.4 24.2 30.3 23.9 29.3 21.6 28.8 15.6 27.5 13.5
2000 32.0 24.4 30.0 24.1 33.8 24.4 32.0 21.9 29.0 14.6 27.2 13.5
2001 30.4 23.7 30.3 24.3 21.0 24.0 31.8 23.2 28.3 14.2 27.0 10.5
2002 30.5 23.9 30.1 24.0 31.2 23.6 33.8 20.8 32.2 16.4 29.9 11.0
Av. 30.8 23.9 29.3 24.2 31.5 23.7 32.0 21.2 29.6 15.5 27.7 12.7
33

4.6.4 HUMIDITY

The weather is dry throughout the year when the humidity is very low,
excepting during rainy season when the humidity goes very high.

4.7 DROUGHTS

Drought is not common. No severe drought has been noticed in recent years
but scarcity of water is consistently occurs at various places in the park.

4.8 WATER SOURCES

Though no river passes through the protected area, there are many sources of
water spread over the area.

4.8.1 WETLANDS AND MARSHES

Since the drainage is good inside the protected area, there are no wetlands and
marshes. There are three small tanks inside the park, one on the Eastern side and two on
the Western side. These are located in compartment no. 7 & in compartment no. 5, in
Kawlewada & Zankargondi villages. The Kawlewada tank does not hold water beyond
December. Water in Zankargondi tank is used by the villagers for irrigating paddy crops
when there is dry spell in the monsoon. Submergence area of these tanks is 2.5 ha.
There are three anicuts in park located at Ghodadeo, Ramacha-panghat and
Kamkazari. First two of these anicuts hold water till mid April. However, Kamkazari
anicut becomes dry after December.
The Navegaon Lake is located outside the protected area. Today as per the
existing condition much of the edge of the lake abuts to the paddy fields of the adjoining
villages. With the changing times due to intensive management of the agricultural fields,
the increase in use of chemical fertilizers and insecticides have affected the natural
34

aquatic eco system of the lake which may be one of the major reasons due to which there
has been a gradual but consistent decline in the number of birds visiting the lake.
The active involvement of the fishermen society over the years and introduction
of popular commercial fish varieties and its intensive management also has made the
adverse contribution to the natural aquatic eco system of the lake.
Unrestricted grazing of the local cattle has affected the banks to such an extent that today
one can see only dense bushes of Ipomea species which has eliminated the wild rice,
Vetiveria etc. which is also a major reason for the reduction of bird numbers. With the
area of the lake being auctioned for fishing rights to the various fishing societies and also
the banks being cultivated after the winters with the receding water levels all have
compounded adversely in affecting and damaging the natural eco system of the lake
which is the main cause for reduction of bird numbers visiting the lake. Unless remedial
measures are initiated this important wetland habitat will be lost forever.

4.8.2 NATURE AND DISTRIBUTION OF SOURCES OF WATER
Apart from above mentioned tanks and anicuts, there are many streams / springs
and seepages inside the protected area. Since the area is hilly and undulating, numerous
streams are seen. Most of these have flowing water only in the rains. Only few have
flowing water till the end of December. Small puddles remain in these nallas for 1 or 2
months. Very few puddles last till end of May (i.e. Ambe dodra, Kholzari, Badbadya,
Katethaua etc.).
There are springs like Bodrai, Kamkazari, Jambhulzari, Sanzari, Gopichuha etc.
which hold water till the beginning of rainy season. Seepages like Telangzari, Umarzari
etc. also have water till June end. In addition to these, there are 6 bore wells inside park at
Malkazari, Dhas, Bakinaka, T.K. Joint, Agezari and Katethua. Water is drawn and filled
in tanks / troughs constructed nearby, using hand pumps. Adjoining the protected area
there are many water-holes like Madhavzari, Sulezari, Pandhrizari, Munjalzari,
Wanarchuha, Navegaon tank, Parsodi tank, Khoba tank, Kokna tank, Baki tank and
Mogra tank. Also, bore wells at Rastamodi Joint, Mushan-Jhorwa, Jamdi Gate and
Chutiya Gate are used for filling tanks/ troughs.
35

4.9 RANGE OF WILDLIFE, THEIR STATUS, DISTRIBUTION AND HABITAT
4.9.1 VEGETATION
4.9.1.1 THE BIOGEOGRAPHIC CLASSIFICATION

The National Park is located in biotic province 6B in the Biogeographic zonation, done
by Wild life Institute of India. The classification is:
Biogeographic Kingdom: Paleotropical
Sub kingdom : Indomalayan
Biogeographic zone : 6 Deccan peninsula
Biotic province : 6B Central Deccan.

4.9.1.2 FOREST TYPES, COVER AND FOOD FOR WILD ANIMALS

The forests of the Navegaon National Park belong to 5A/C3 Southern tropical
dry deciduous forests type as per revised classification by Champion and Seth. Main
feature of the forest is presence of Garari (Cleistanthuscollinus) in the middle storey in
most of the parts.

Following main sub types are found in the protected area.
1. MIXED FORESTS: Most of the forest is of this sub type with mixed forests, rarely
semi-evergreen and more or less leafless in dry season. Grasses and thorny species occur
over all rock formations in the region. Bamboos are often present on slopes. Good
quality forests are found in pockets on deep moist soils in valleys and along nalla, banks,
lower hill slopes with deep alluvium deposits. The quality is poor on shallow and steep
slopes.

2. TEAK FORESTS: These occur on hill slopes in few small patches. Other species found
in this type are Saja, Dhaora, Bija. Lendia, Mahuwa and Bamboos
(Dendrocalamusstrictus)etc. Katang (Bambusaarundinacea) is noticed in a small patch
near Bodrai.
36

3. FERNS AND EPIPHYTES: Number of ferns is identified along the streams and in the
vicinity of springs and seepages. Insectivorous plants such as Drosera species and
Bladderwarts have also been identified in the area. Numbers of epiphytes are also
identified in the area.

4. PLANTATIONS: Fruit plantations have been taken up in compartment no. 221, 222
and 9 in 1990 over 50 ha. and in compartment no. 202 over 10 ha.

5. GRASSES: Most of the area in the park is covered with wide variety of grasses. Some
of the common grasses are Heteropogoncontortus, Apludamutica, Themedaqudrivalvis,
Cynodondactylon etc. The grass growth is profuse under slightly open crop and in open
patches.

4.9.1.3 SPECIES AND COMMUNITIES OF CONSERVATION IMPORTANCE

So far, there is no record of any endemic species from the protected area. It is
necessary to study the flora of the area in detail for this purpose. The rareness of the
species needs also to be ascertained.

4.9.2 ANIMALS
4.9.2.1 VERTEBRATES, THEIR STATUS, DISTRIBUTION AND HABITAT,
HABITAT QUALITY, QUANTITY AND KEY AREAS

The National Park consists of varied wild fauna. There are more than 26 species
of mammals, 209 species of birds and 9 species of Reptiles. The endangered and
threatened species occurring in the protected area are Gaur, Chausinga, Indian Wolf,
Leopard, Mouse Deer, Pangolin, Ratel, Sloth Bear, Tiger, Wild Dog, Python and Flying
Squirrel.
37

The herbivores include Sambar, Nilgai, Gaur, Barking Deer, Chausinga, Wild Pig
etc. Cheetal in the protected area are very few. This is probably due to lack of open grass
lands in the area. Mouse Deer is found rarely. Amongst the primates, Hanuman Langur
and Rhesus Monkey are common. Slender Loris has been recorded from an area
adjoining the National Park.
Wild Pigs, Sloth Bears are commonly found in the area. Recently a brown variety
of Sloth Bear has been located in the area. The carnivores found are Panther, Wild Dogs,
Jungle Cat, Civets. Hyena and Tiger. The last one is rare in park. Pangolin and Ratel are
also found.

STATUS OF WILDLIFE
Seasonal migration is noticed in case of Gaur and Wilddogs. Gaurs usually move
to upper reaches of the hill during rainy season and winter but come down during
summer. Wild Dogs are more commonly seen in plains and valleys during later half of
winter and in summer. Panthers are fairly common but Tigers are rarely seen. There is
large track of forests on the eastern side and northern side of the National Park and
animals do migrate to these areas. No physical barrier has been noticed which can hinder
their movements in this direction.
The undulating terrain with thick vegetation constitutes an ideal habitat for the
Sloth Bear where they are sighted frequently as compared to other animals. Presence of
brown coloured Sloth Bear is rarely occurring but unique to Navegaon National Park.
Adjoining Navegaon Lake attracts a number of migratory birds such as Brahminy Ducks,
Red Crested Pochard, Cotton Teals, Pin Tails etc. Saras Cranes are also known to nest in
area adjoining the Navegaon Lake.

4.9.2.2 LIMITING FACTORS
1. COVER: Cover is something which provides the wild animal with shelter. It can be
dense growth, forest land, burrow, hallow, grassland, crevices etc. e.g. Porcupine needs
cover in the shape of a burrow whereas Malabar Pied Hornbill or Woodpecker prefers a
hollow in a tree trunk. More so, animals are in need of different types of cover at
38

different times of their life. Such covers can be escape cover, ambush cover, breeding
cover, thermal cover etc. e.g. Large low lying leaves of Bauhinia Vahli act as good
thermal and also breeding cover for Red Jungle Fowl whereas flat stretches of forest floor
acts as escape cover for Nilgai.

2. WATER: Excepting the fringe areas, water sources are well distributed within the park
in the form of natural springs and seepages. However, there are no large water bodies
inside the park. Flowing water from springs and seepages need to be stored through
development of waterholes so that it is easily available to the wildlife in summers.

3. FOOD: Generally, the availability is adequate to all wild animals. The approaching
summer season brings in the scarcity period when animals exhibit a gradual shift to less
preferred food items to meet their requirement. They are seen feeding on fallen leaves of
Bamboo, Mahua and Butea flowers, fruits of Tendu, Buchanania, Mahua, Mango etc.
Also barks of some species show signs of being eaten by animals e.g. bark of Teak are
eaten by Gaurs. Fires also play a major role in creating scarcity conditions for herbivores
as grass and herbaceous forage gets burnt. Hence rigid fire protection has to be ensured.




39

5. SUGGESTIONS FOR HABITAT IMPROVEMENT

THE STRATEGIES
5.1 BOUNDARIES

Total length of outer boundary is 63 km. of which artificial boundary is already
demarcated with pillars. The rest of the boundary should be demarcated by fixing R.C.C.
pillars. As the area is hilly and the approaches are difficult the cost of transportation of
the material should be high. In addition every year 1/5
th
boundary should be maintained
and the pillars wherever needed should be repaired. The trench-cum-mound (T.C.M.)
fencing on the boundary should be repaired as per need.
The internal boundaries viz. round boundaries, beat boundaries and compartment
boundaries should be maintained as fire lines. The boundaries of rounds should be
demarcated by painting marks on big sized trees at suitable intervals.

5.2 ZONATION AND ZONE PLANS

To achieve the objectives of management, it is suggested to divide the area of
Navegaon National Park into
Core zone
Tourism zone
Buffer zone
Zone of influence





40

5.2.1 CORE ZONE
Core zone should be the area where all sort of activities should be prohibited and
biotic interference should be reduced to minimum. Main objective of this zone should be
to preserve the nature as it is. However, some works like soil and moisture conservation,
development of water holes etc. should be taken up in the interest of wildlife only.

5.2.2 TOURISM ZONE
Tourism zone should be proposed only to act as a zone wherein tourists should be
allowed to enter for recreation, wild life studies, trekking etc. which should also help
imparting environmental education to the visitors.

5.2.3 BUFFER ZONE
Rest of the area should be known as buffer zone where in movement of vehicles
for purpose of wildlife sightings should be permitted including sitting on Machans, Watch
towers & Hides. Camping should not be allowed in this area.

5.2.4 ZONE OF INFLUENCE
This zone is categorized as under
A) Within Protected area.
B) Outside Protected area

A) Within Protected area
This zone includes
a) Govt. land i.e. Protected Forest 39.12 Ha.
b) Private land: 188.99 Ha.
Protected Forest of 39.12 Ha; is under the control of regular forest Division,
Gondia. The area of 188.99 Ha; is occupied by villages viz. Kawlewada, Kalimati,
Zankargondi and Malkazari. For shifting these villages outside the protected area, the
inquir is completed and the proposal is submitted to the Central Government by Gondia
41

Division which is pending at Bhopal. After shifting these villages the area should be
developed under meadow development scheme. Also the Nallah bunding and disilting of
existing tank should be done and the new water holes should be formed to satisfy the
thirst of wild fauna.

B) Outside Protected area
This zone includes
a) Navegaon Lake
Around the periphery of Navegaon Lake the Ipomoea (Beshram) will be removed
area will be desilted and Khass grass will be planted.

b) Adjoining Villages.
Regarding adjoining villages following activities must be taken.
Vaccination to the cattle
When the domestic animals enter inside the protected area for the purpose of grazing,
then the epidemic diseases of these animals spread among wild animals. So, the
vaccination to the cattle should be done for each animal. For this purpose the park
managers should take all necessary steps to ensure timely and holistic inoculation of the
cattle with correct doses viz. Booster dose, primary dose etc. also timely and unexpired
supply of vaccines to complete the work within a planned time frame should be ensured

Biogas Plant installation on subsidized rate
Biogas Plant facility should be provided to the villagers on subsidized rate to stop the
entry of villagers inside the protected area for collecting fire wood which would
reduce the percent of deforestation.

L.P.G distribution
L.P.G facility should be made available to the villagers on subsidized rate.


42

Skill development
The training for various ventures such as poultry farm, goat farm, crop rotation,
nursaries, composting, photographic, driving should be provided to the villagers, so
that the village youths get chance to earn their livelihood by self employment.

Self help group
A self help group is essential for the self dependence of women. For this purpose
home loan and business loan should be provided at the minimum rate of interest.

Compensation for temporary/permanent disability or death of livestock/human
beings.
In case of any damage or death of the migrating domestic animals inside the protected
area due to negligence of the forest department then the forest department should
compensate the owner of the cattle.

Nistar facility
Facility of urinals and latrines should be provided to the villagers, to stop the entry of
villagers inside the protected area for such activities.











43

5.3 THEME PLANS
5.3.1 CONTROL ON ILLICIT FELLING / POACHING ETC

To control illicit felling, it is proposed to establish a network of protection huts
located near the periphery of the National Park so as to maintain a check on intruders.
Regular foot patrolling using walkie talkies will act as a deterrent against illicit felling &
even poaching. Foot paths of 4 feet width will ensure visibility & safety of the patrolling
squads & will also serve for controlling the spread of fire during the fire season.
It is proposed to create special protection squads at Kosbi and Navegaon each
manned by one forester and 4 forest guards. They should do the work of protection in the
vulnerable areas of Baki, Kalimati, Kawlewada, Kokna and Khoba no.1, Khoba No.2,
Rampuri, Parsodi beats by helping the local staff.
Presently there is only one Range in the Park. It is proposed to create one
additional range with headquarter at Kohmara encompassing the area of Kosbi and
Kokna rounds and the other with headquarter at Navegaon covering Nishani and Pauni
rounds. Poaching of wild animals should be under control and stray incidents that occur
should be controlled by the regular patrolling by mobile/special protection squads.
The timber and bamboo seized by the staff should be collected and handed over to
Navegaon Depot of Gondia Forest Division for its further disposal. As reported by forest
officials there are no serious problem of fishing in the park. and the fishing in the
Zankargondi will automatically get stopped after shifting the village. Lopping of trees for
fodder is not noticed in the protected area.

5.3.2 PROTECTION TO WETLANDS AND OTHER UNIQUE HABITATS

The unique habitats like caves, overhangs should be identified and protected. To
protect the riparian habitat, no felling for any purpose should be allowed in the National
Park. There is a sudden appearance or disappearance of small streams in the area. All
these areas should be protected and conserved.

44

5.3.3 GRAZING CONTROL

Grazing should be totally prohibited in National Park. The villages inside the
protected area are proposed to be relocated out side, till then the cattle from these villages
should be confined to the village area only.

5.3.4 CONTROL ON MAN ANIMAL CONFLICT

The conflict between wild animal and man is mainly noticed in the protected area.
Here damage to the crops is a serious problem especially in case of Kawlewada &
Zankargondi. Cases of cattle lifting by panther are also reported from time to time.
Instances of cattle predation by carnivores can be minimized if the cattle do not
go astray in the protected area. The villagers should therefore be perused to graze their
cattle in the vicinity of the village only and under supervision of a Gaiki (grazier).
Compensation need should be paid in cattle kill cases promptly so that faith of the
villagers in Government will continue. In case of wild animals straying in the adjoining
villages, it is necessary to catch them and release in the protected area.
For this, it is proposed to have traps/cages and tranquilizing weapons.





1
2
3
4
5
Panther trap cages
Large carnivores (like tiger) trap cages
Small mammal traps
Trap nets
Tranquilizing equipments
2 Nos.
1 Nos.
5 Nos.
2 Nos.
1 Set
45

6. WATER MANAGEMENT

6.1 WATER MANAGEMENT STATUS
Management of water resources is an important aspect in the management of the
protected area in order to
i) Make water available to the wild animals within a reasonable distance.
ii) Limit the movement of animals outside the protected area for water by providing
water inside the protected area, thus avoiding conflict with human, and cattle.
iii) Create a good distribution of perennial water sources to tide over the pinch period.
The availability of water within a reasonable distance must be ensured
everywhere in the national park area, so that sources of water will be well distributed in
and around the protected area. Water flow in most of the nallas till December end. Water
availability till summer should be increased by constructing Gulley Plugs, Kachha
Bandharas, Inverted Bandharas etc. The sources of water mentioned above include
natural as well as artificial sources. The structures like anicuts would help in extending
the availability of water in the streams / nallas. Borewells would help in providing water
through troughs by tapping ground water.
To extend the period of water availability in the streams/nallas, every year some
of the nallas should be selected and small bandharas should be constructed using locally
available soil and stones to arrest the flow of water at the end of monsoon season. Also
dry rubble stone bunds should be constructed to help in controlling soil erosion as well as
arresting silt entering the water pools downstream. A few cement plugs should also be
constructed for this purpose.
At few places underground bandharas should also be constructed in which trench
across the width of nalla be dug to depth of 1 to 1.5 meters and should be filled with
puddle of black cotton soil. This can help in arresting the water current underneath.
The sources of water in the protected area are many in number and well spread
also. But it is necessary to increase the duration of water availability in nallas. Some of
the seepages / springs are damaged due to use by animals. It is necessary to cover these
sources and protect them. Water from these sources needs to be taken a distance away
and filled in troughs, so that the sources remain undisturbed. It is also necessary to have
tractor-tanker facility for transporting water in case of emergency/acute scarcity.
46



























Existing Artificial Waterholes
Map 5
47


6.2 STRENGTHENING OF EXISTING WATER HOLES

i) Jambulzari water hole in compartment no.7 which gets damaged due to its use by
wild animals should be repaired.
ii) Water from spring in compartment no. 223 should be collected in a tank which
may then be taken to trough at lower level through pipes, so that there will be
pool of water thereby increasing the availability of water to wild animals.
iii) Telangzari water hole in compartment no. 203 should also be developed by
constructing a trough to collect the seepage from the rocks.
iv) Morcha water hole in compartment no. 5 and in compartment no. 6 gets deposited by
the silt and sand which should be removed every year.
v) Kamkazari water hole in compartment no.215 should be deepened with proper
slope on one side so that animal can have access to water easily.
vi) As soon as Kawlewada and Zankargondi villages will be shifted, the existing
tanks in these villages will be an important component of the habitat. These tanks
should be repaired which can act as new water holes.
.











48



























Strengthening Of Existing Waterholes
Map 6
49

6.3 PROPOSED NEW ARTIFICIAL WATERHOLES

Wild animal generally go in the western portion of the park for drinking water
during summer. This increases possibility of poaching, contacting diseases and man
animal conflict. Hence it is necessary to develop more artificial water holes in the
western region which include compartment no. 202, 4, 5, 214, 216, 217 and 219 in
western region.
Also it is require to provide some artificial waterholes at the boundary of the
protected area which include compartment no. 223, 721, 725, 697, 684, 686, 679 and 667
in the southern region while compartment no. 669 and 589 in the eastern region and
compartment no 574, 569, 561 and 13 in northern region so that movement of wild
animals outside the protected area stops.
Apart from this, bore wells should be sunk and fitted with hand pumps at suitable
places, and water from these bore wells with manual operation should be filled in the
troughs constructed nearby.














50



























Proposed New Artificial Waterholes
Map7
51

6.4 PROPOSED CHECK DAMS

Wild animals straying out of forests in search of water resulting in man-animal
conflicts would hopefully come down with proper planning of watershed development
work. To reduce the possibility of poaching, contacting diseases and mananimal
conflict, it is advisable to construct check dams inside the protected area in following
region.
Compartment no. 713
Anicuts which are located at Ghodadeo in compartment no. 708 hold water up to till
mid April. There are two waterholes in this region but there is no sufficient drain
(nalla) to construct check dams.
The compartment no. 713 which is just below the compartment no. 708 is having a
long and large size drain (nalla). So, it is advisable to construct check dam in this
region.

Compartment no.700 and Compartment no.704
Anicuts which are located at Ramacha-panghat in compartment no.702 become dry
after mid of April. The contour map shows that the compartment no.702 comprises of
high hilly region and therefore it is not possible to construct check dam in this region.
But there is long drainage line in Nishani region which lies between compartment
no.700 and compartment no.704 and which is quite nearer to compartment no.702.
Also contour map shows that it is suitable to provide check dam in this region since
the reservoir created by the construction of check dam is expected to store sufficient
water.

There is large track of forests on the eastern side of park and animals generally
migrate to these areas. During migration, animals greatly suffer from water problems,
due to lack of water sources which makes the animals to cross the boundary of park and
become victim of accident.
52

So, to protect the wildlife it is beneficial to construct check dams in eastern
regions which include compartment no. 681, 689, in between compartment no. 685 and
690 and in between compartment no. 572 and 577.
Compartment no. 681.
Compartment no. 681 is having a drainage lines flowing through this region. Also
contour map of this region shows that this region is not hilly region.

Compartment no 689.
In compartment no. 689 there is junction of four drainage line coming from four
different directions, from these two drainage lines are long and large in size. Also the
contour lines indicate that this region is not too much hilly which is suitable to
construct check dam.

Between compartment no. 686 and 690.
A small waterbody is situated at the boundary of the protected area in compartment
no.685. Animals generally go towards this waterbody for drinking water and cross
the boundary. To save the wildlife it is recommended to provide check dam in
between compartment no. 686 and compartment no. 690.

Between compartment no. 572 and 577.
In between compartment no. 572 and compartment no.577 there is drainage line
which is flowing towards the northern region. Also contour map shows that this
region is not too much hilly to provide check dam.

The use of check dams has been proved to be an effective method in rising and
maintaining the water and moisture levels, thus minimizing the risk of wildlife death
especially during the prolonged drought periods.



53



























Proposed Check Dams
Map 8
54


























Strengthening Of Existing Waterholes,Proposed New Artificial Waterholes and
Proposed Check Dams
Map 9

55

6.5 MAINTENANCE OF WATER HOLES

The water holes will be maintained as per instructions given below:
i) All the water holes should be cleaned and any silt, sand, debris should be removed
in October every year. This will enhance the storage capacity. The debris and silt
should be placed / heaped on downstream side so that it will not enter the water
hole again.
ii) Any damage to tanks, troughs etc. should be repaired regularly. An early action
will help in preventing loss of water.
iii) Approach to water holes for wild animals should be smoothened, wherever
possible.
iv) All gates of anicuts should be closed using timber planks and puddle/mud by the
end of monsoon (October, November).
v) Kachha bandharas on streams and nallas should be completed by the end of
November so that water can be retained for longer period in the nalla. Small water
pools in the nallas should be deepened by scooping the sand/silt and making water
available periodically after February till it lasts.
vi) When leaf fall starts lot of litter collects in the open water holes. It gets
decomposed in the water and makes it dirty. The leaf litter should be removed by
taking cleaning operation in March /April every year.
vii) The bore wells should be checked for any defects immediately after monsoon and
got repaired. Smooth functioning of the hand pumps should be ensured by
applying oil periodically. A permanent level marker should be painted in tanks to
indicate water level. Proper supervision should be done to ensure that the tanks
are filled regularly.
viii) To make the nallas perennial or increase the durability of water in it, all the
micro-catchments of these nallas should be treated for soil and moisture
conservation. This will improve water availability in the water holes and
dependence on artificial water sources like tankers can be minimized.


56

6.6 SOIL & MOISTURE CONSERVATION MEASURES

Soil and moisture conservation works should be taken up in the Navegaon
National Park with the objective of arresting soil erosion, maintenance of catchments of
tanks and increasing the water availability in the park.
Focus should be laid on treatment of microcatchment areas of the nallas. The nalla
should be tackled from its origin. Gully plugging and pitching should be done to restrict
the soil erosion. Similarly, Nalla Bunds, Check Dams as well as Kaccha Bandharas
should be done for arresting soil erosion and also retention of water.


6.7 MANAGEMENT OF WET LAND

Since it has already been mentioned that remedial measures should have to be
initiated for improving the aquatic habitat of the Navegaon Lake which is outside the
protected area and includes under Zone of Influence, an attempt should be made on a
small scale initially in south eastern corner of the lake which is drained from the
adjoining forest area. The land adjoining the lake and between the forest should be
managed without adversely affecting the dependent communities. This portion of the lake
is relatively shallow and is drained from the adjoining forest. Therefore the dangers are
very common.
Therefore to avoid the dangers following measures are suggested.
1) Erradication of Ipomea, Lantana and other exotic weeds from the banks upto the road
passing on the edge of the lake from Navegaon complex to Sanjay kuti Rest House
should be done on Mosaic pattern.
2) Introduction of Vetiveria, Wild rice & Local reeds on the banks
3) Planting of Acacia arabica trees (seedlings) at suitable spaces wherever possible.
4) A boundary barrier should be erected from the boat jetty to the opposite bank i.e.
Sanjay Kuti Rest House by bouys and chain so as to demarcate the area of the lake
taken up for management.
57

5) Suitable hides, watch towers should be erected along the banks to enable bird
watching for the nature lovers and visitors

6.8 GRASS LAND / MEADOW DEVELOPMENT

Identification of suitable sites preferably natural banks or areas with sparse
vegetational cover or deserted village sites or shifted village should be chosen for
creation of meadows. The site should not be less than 2 hectares and not more than 15
hectares. To increase palatable fodder species following operation will be done.
Area suitable for grass lands should be permanently demarcated by two green rounds
& one red round in between two green rounds by paint on boundary trees.
Unpalatable grasses should be removed before flowering.
The browse species should be pollarded.
The tree growth in these areas should be removed after retaining few scattered trees
for shade of wild animals and for the use of birds.
The tree regeneration should be uprooted.
The blank spaces should be ploughed and planted with palatable grasses either
through sowing seeds or through tussocks.
The area should be planted with few fruit species like Pipal, Ber, Aonla, Jamun etc.,
which will provide food and shade for the use of Wild Animals and Birds.
Annually 15 hect.of meadow operation which will include planting and seeding
grass tufts of indigenous grass should be planted and fruits trees will be planted in
pit of 60x60.






58

6.9 PROVISION OF SALTLICKS / WALLOWS
Salt licks should be provided near all the waterholes in the parks by putting salt
cakes. Also mixing of salt in soil should be done so that the salt will thoroughly mix with
the soil and during course of time will form a natural salt lick.
Creation of artificial wallows is not proposed. Only the natural wallows should
be maintained by taking up operations of moisture conservation/adding water during
summer.

6.10 WILD LIFE HEALTH
Wildlife health is an important aspect in protected area management because such
communicable diseases of viral, bacterial, protozoan and rickettsial origin may dwindle
their population due to death, increase in the vulnerability to predation, reduction in
competitive ability and induction of ebb in its reproductive success.
A plan on the following lines should be implemented for the wildlife health and
surveillance.
The inadequacy of field staff which is skilled and well informed in wildlife disease
monitoring should be removed by imparting them classroom as well as field training.
Help from veterinary officers, trained managers and institutions should be taken.
Health monitoring procedure should be introduced as a regular exercise in the
protected area and areas around it. This would facilitate advance sensing of any
epidemic.
Field staff should be supplied with easy and self explanatory formats, data sheet to be
filled in upon notification of suspected disease evidence.
Liaison with veterinary and animal husbandry department, veterinary college should
be developed. The park managers should organize periodical joint touring of the park
at least once in a month.
Guideline information about frank clinical signs of diseases should be prepared in a
booklet form in local language, which would be useful to the field staff in monitoring
exercises.
59

A carcass of dead animal if found and not much damaged by scavengers should be
immediately opened for postmortem which would be extremely valuable in tentative
diagnosis. For this, help from local veterinary officers or LDO should be taken.
Macro-parasitological investigations of helminths like liver fluke, arthropods like
fleas, ticks, flies, nematodstrematods infection / infestation should be conducted. The
faecal samples of the wild animals should be sent for investigations of any
gastrointestinal parasite.
Adequate supply of salt, rich in minerals, in which the forest soil is poor, should be
made.
Regular monitoring and investigations of the water in various stagnated water bodies
in the protected area should be conducted for the presence of any ectoparasites,
endoparasites or microparasites etc.
Monitoring of domestic cattle in and around the protected area should be undertaken
with the help of veterinary department or District livestock development officer for
any possible threat of epidemic. Upon finding any such evidence, timely prophylactic
measures should be taken.
Equipments for chemical restraint of wild animals should be procured. Tele-inject
gun which has multipurpose uses and is also handy for the animals pertaining to this
area should be purchased with adequate quantities of drugs and needles, darts etc.
Squeeze cages should be purchased / prepared.
Villagers keeping cattle should be made aware of proper animal husbandry practices,
stall feeding, vaccination, ill effects of use of chemical insecticides, pesticides and
fertilizers, proper carcass disposal etc.
Visitors coming to the Navegaon National Park should also be made aware of proper
disposal of non-biodegradable garbage, food leftovers etc. Dust bins should be
provided in vulnerable area and steps to ensure timely clearance of such garbage
dumps should be taken.
60

A fully fledged comprehensive and practical wildlife health monitoring and
surveillance plan should be prepared in the plan period based on the observations and
data collected.
To take quick action in the event and epidemic in wild animals, it should be necessary
to get the information of such epidemic well in time. For this the staff should be given
training so as to know the symptoms of major diseases in animals and take remedial
measures.
Vaccination against diseases like Anthrax, Black quarter, Rinderpest should be done
by Animal Husbandry Department annually routine programme.





61

CONCLUSION

Every animal must live somewhere, but all animals cannot live everywhere. Just
like humans, wild animals have specific requirements which human get at home. The
habitat for any wild animal must provide the same thing:
cover from weather and predators,
space to gather in food and water and
food and water for nourishment
Each wildlife species requires a certain amount of space to move about, avoid or
escape potential predators, obtain sufficient food and water for survival and rest. This
space is often referred to as the home range of any animal. To provide this home range to
the wild animals, maximum area of the forest should be declared as the protected area
and strict restriction must be imposed on the deforestation and entry of villagers inside
the protected area.
The availability of water varies over season and space. If the sufficient water is
made available at reasonable distance throughout the year, then the trees, herbs, shrubs,
grass, will be enriched and if the trees, herbs, shrubs, grass, will be enriched then there
will be increase in number of herbivores and automatically the number of carnivores.
Thus by implementation of watershed management there will be overall enrichment of
flora and fauna.
It is finally concluded that implementation of Watershed management of
Navegaon National Park will be the best approach to fight with present scenario of water
scarcity in all aspects. Hence Watershed management of Navegaon National Park is
highly recommended.






62

REFERENCE

Administrative Map of Navegaon National Park
Advanced Dam Engineering for Design, Construction, and Rehabilitation by
Robert B. Jansen published by Springer Science & Business Media, 1988.
Hydrologic and sediment monitoring of Watersheds in India a field manual,
published by Indo-German Bilateral Project.
Handbook of dam engineering by Alfred R. Golz pubished by Van Nostrand
Reinhold Co., 1977.
Impact Assessment of Watershed Management a projects by M.W. Bollom
published by Indo-German Bilateral Project.
Principles and practices of integrated watershed management in India published by
Indo-German Bilateral Project.
A Text Book of Hydrology and Water Resources Engineering by Sharma R.K and
Sharma T.K, Dhanpat Rai Publication, New Delhi.
Watershed Management by J. V. S. Murty published by New Age
International, 1998.
Watershed management guidelines for Indian Conditions by E.M.Tideman, 1999
(fifth reprint) Omega Scientific Publications, New Delhi.
Website: http//www.gondia.com.
Website: http//www.watershedmanagement.com.
Website: http//www.navegaonnationalpark.com.




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