|
Visit the Madhav National Park, one of the most popular wildlife reserves in Shivpuri. The national park is 156 sq km in area and is open for tourists throughout the year.
The park was originally established as the Shivpuri National Park in 1958 simultaneously with the creation of the State of Madhya Pradesh. It now enjoys further protection under the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972.
The forest area is a mixture of wooded hills, dry, mixed and deciduous with flat grasslands around the lake, it offers abundant opportunities of sighting a variety of wildlife. The predominant species that inhabits the park is the deer, of which the most easily sighted are the graceful little Chinkara, the Indian gazelle, and the Chital. Other species that have their habitat in the park are Nilgai, Sambar, Chausingha or four-horned Antelope, Blackbuck, Sloth Bear, Leopard and the ubiquitous common Langur. The artificial lake, Chandpata, is the winter home of migratory Geese, Pochard, Pintail, Teal, Mallard Gadwall, Red Wattled Lapwing, Large Pied Wagtail, Pond Heron, White - Breasted Kingfisher, Cormorant, Painted Stork, White Ibis, Laggar Falcon, Purple Sunbird, Paradise Flycatcher and Golden Oriole.
Earlier the Madhav National Park was a favorite place of hunting animals for the kings. But when the princely states were merged with independent India, and the people became conscious of conservation, the 616 hunting estates became the wildlife sanctuaries and national parks of the land. India has emerged as a world leader in conservation practices and it has a full-fledged national Institute of Wildlife Management. On your India tour
you can see all the wild animals like the big cat, a tiger or the rare Asiatic Lion, within naked lens' reach. And the fact that they are not frightened of you lets you make observations and take pictures, which only dedicated naturalists could have hoped for just a decade ago.
The Madhav National Park is particularly rich in many species of deer, is Madhav National Park in Shivpuri just 112 kilometers from the former princely capital of Gwalior. And Gwalior, in turn, is air-linked with Delhi and Mumbai.
As for accommodation, the state government has built a superbly conceived tourist village. This, in fact, is a well-run hotel structured around independent cottages with red-tiled roofs, spreading across landscaped grounds and overlooking an artificial lake. Externally, the cottages replicate the traditional village houses of this area but every cottage has all the facilities that a visitor can expect from a tourist hotel, including huge picture windows, which give superb views of the lake dotted with water fowl. And on the far shore of the lake, is the Madhav National Park.
At Madhav National Park one can spot herds of chinkara, the Indian gazelle; and the chital, or spotted deer. Other animals that you can see are the slate-grey, heavily built nilgai and sambar. You can also see glimpses of the Chausingha, the four-horned antelope, and the very graceful blackbuck whose alert males sport rather debonair black, corkscrew, horns. Migratory geese, pochard, pintail and mallard paddle and dabble in the lake. Cormorants, painted storks, white ibis, pond herons and white-breasted kingfishers haunt its reedy, wet, fringes. And lapwings, wagtails, purple sunbirds, paradise flycatchers and golden orioles form a great attraction at the park.
The Sakhya Sagar Lake is situated close to the forests of the Madhav National Park, habitat of a variety of reptiles. Seen here are the Marsh Crocodile or Mugger, Indian Python and the Monitor Lizard. On the shores of the lake and connected to it by a broad pier is a Boat Club, an airy, delicate structure with glass panels. The Boat Club is an impressive structure with massive, soaring, pillars and great terrace edged by a balustrade and enriched by statues of sportspeople cast in the heroic mould.
On your tour to the Madhav National Park you can visit the Madhav Vilas Palace, standing upon a natural eminence, the elongated rose-pink summer palace of the Scindias is built in truly royal proportions. It is a fine example of colonial architecture and is remarkable for its marble floors, iron columns, graceful terraces and the Ganapati Mandap. From the turrets, the view is a spectacular one of Shivpuri town and the park beyond. Bhadaiya Kund is a scenic spot by a natural spring. The water here is rich in minerals, supposedly of a curative nature. As you walk deep within the forests of the park, on its highest point, is the turreted George Castle built by Jiyaji Rao Scindia. From here the view of the lake is unparalleled and the best time to visit the castle is at sunset when the lakes below mirror the changing hues of the evening sky.
The delightful blend of fine craftsmanship and princely grandeur, Victorian smugness and forest wealth is what gives Shivpuri a flavor that is quite unique.
Fact File:
The nearest airport is at Gwalior (112 km), connected with Delhi, Bhopal, Indore and Mumbai. Nearest railheads are at Jhansi (101 km) and Gwalior which are on the Delhi-Chennai main lines.Shivpuri is connected by regular bus services with Gwalior, Indore, Bhopal, Jhansi and Ujjain.
To make your wildlife tour more exciting and comfortable we offer you the best accommodation options available at MP Tourism Hotel Palash and Hotel Panchanan, and other hotels like Ashok Lake View, Jehan Numa Palace, and Imperial Sabre.
| 
