Palkot Wildlife Sanctuary
Palkot Wildlife Sanctuary is a unique ecosystem situated in Gumla and Simdega districts of Jharkhand state. It has an area of 183.18 sq.km. It provides varied habitat conditions for wildlife and is among one of the best potential habitats for bears in the state. However, the forest area is degraded and fragmented due to the villages present within the boundary of the sanctuary. Total geographical area within the boundary of the sanctuary is about 760.948 Sq.Km. out of which forest area is only 183.18 Sq.Km. This figure suggests the degree of fragmentation. The main mega fauna of the area is bear. It also inhabits leopards but perhaps very few in numbers. Wild boars are abundant in number and a few ungulate species are also seen. Presently 153 species of bird has been documented. Previously 124 bird species was reported. In view of the proper habitat condition potential of the area as a good habitat of wildlife and uniqueness of resources, it needs to be managed for enhancing its carrying capacity and for making the degrading habitat more and more suitable for the flagship species of the area and other faunal and floral communities.
Introduction to the Area
The sanctuary area is situated in the districts of Gumla and Simdega between towns of Gumla and Simdega. It is about 25 km. away from Gumla. It was notified as Wildlife Sanctuary in the year of 1990 vide notification no 1174 dated-22-03-1990. The total area of the sanctuary is 18318 hac.
GEOLOGY, ROCK AND SOIL
The sanctuary area is full of small hill and undulating land with intermittent plane land in which habitation and agricultural land exist. Some of the hills are barren and covered with hard rocks. There are several caves, cavities and crevices, which form suitable habitat for some wild animals especially sloth bear. The soil in plane land is clay to sandy and sandy loam. The lower lands forming "DON" are quite fertile and very suitable for paddy cultivation.
Terrain
The configurations of the ground vary considerably. Some are plane tracts while some are hilly and mountainous. Some of the hills are rocky and in some cases, the slopes are steep. In between the hills, there are generally extensive farmlands or gently sloping rice-producing fields. Patches of the land are also covered with Sal Forest. Plateau formation locally known as "Pat" is the most striking topographical feature of the track and is found on almost all hills in smaller or larger extent. These "Pat" with forested depressions here and there and with their hamlets and fields form a continuous Plateau of vast dimension.
CLIMATE :
The three stations for recording rainfall data, one of them is situated at Palkot i.e. within the sanctuary area, the second one at Gumla and the third one at Simdega. The data recorded from these stations are given below:-
Mammalian Fauna:
Main Species of the Sanctuary is Sloth Bear and Deer. Recently it is seen that the number of Rhesus Monkey Macaca mulata has increased. The mammalian fauna that are found in the P.A. can be divided into primates, carnivores, ungulates, bears, mongoose, civets and other species.
Birds :
Birds are amongst the most eye-catching forms of animal life. These are bipedal egg laying vertebrates in which the forelimbs have modified into wings. There are about 10,000 living bird species in the world. Birds are one of the best indicators of environmental quality of any ecosystem (Ripley, 1978). Of the total number of different species of birds known to inhabit earth, about one tenth is found in India alone. The avifauna of India includes around 1313 species.
Ecotourism :
Palkot Wildlife Sanctuary is one of the fewest protected areas of the newly created Jharkhand state. Though its potential for ecotourism is unexplored, it can prove to be one of the best protected areas for ecotourism. Wildlife population in the area is not so encouraging but the mythological legends, historical places and scenic wilderness beauty has got potential for tourism. The avifauna, sal and mixed deciduous forests, river, caves, Tapkara dam and picturesque flat rocky patches are some of the attractive features which can attract tourists provided the problem of fear from extremism prevalent in the area goes down
The whole area of 183.18 sq.km areas is open for tourism but most of the area is inaccessible. Only the Palkot beat attracts local tourists. Tapkara dam, Gobar Silli (Palkot), Kaisara Pahar (popularlv known as Jahagi Pahar), caves and natural springs in Palkot Pahar are a few places which are approachable and are on Gumla-Simdega Road, these are famous tourist places. Local people from Gumla and Simdega come to visit wild animals or to have a fill of wilderness or for bird watching.
RAIN FALL PATTERN AND DISTRIBUTION:
There are usually three climatic seasons-The cold weather, the summer and rainy. The cold weather sets in early November and lasts till the end of February. The hot weather period lies between the end of March to June. The rain breaks towards the end of June and continues till the end of September. Winter is not that severe. Fog occasionally occurs during these seasons.
Organization and administration :
The table at present the administration set-up of Palkot Sanctuary is as follows:-
| Division | Range | Beat | Sub-beat | Area (Sq.Km.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wildlife Division, Ranchi | Palkot Wildlife Sanctuary HQ- Gumla | Palkot | Palkot | 24.82 |
| Damkara | 24.36 | |||
| Baghma | 27.09 | |||
| Sijang | 38.20 | |||
| Kharwadih | 18.42 | |||
| Raidih | Nawagarh | 25.88 | ||
| Jariatta | 6.77 | |||
| Ramdeaga | 4.35 | |||
| Kochedega | Kuruskela | 10.53 | ||
| Kewandih | 2.76 | |||
| Total | 183.18 |