Common Hawk Cuckoo (Cuculus varius) in Hyderabad W IMG 7381

Mahavir Harina Vanasthali National Park is a

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...

national park A national park is a natural park in use for conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual ...

located in Vanasthalipuram , Saheb Nagar,

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern Indi ...

Telangana Telangana (; , ) is a state in India situated on the south-central stretch of the Indian peninsula on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the eleventh-largest state and the twelfth-most populated state in India with a geographical area of and 35 ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. It is spread over 3605 acres. It is the largest green lung space in the city of Hyderabad.

History

The park was named after Mahavir, the 24th Tirthankara of Jainism, in commemoration of his 2500th nirvan anniversary in the year 1975. The place where the park is located was once a private hunting ground for the

Nizam The Nizams were the rulers of Hyderabad from the 18th through the 20th century. Nizam of Hyderabad (Niẓām ul-Mulk, also known as Asaf Jah) was the title of the monarch of the Hyderabad State ( divided between the state of Telangana, Mar ...

, rulers of

. A deer park was set up in order to preserve this precious heritage and rehabilitate it. It was donated by the nizam to establish a national park.

The Park

Animals living in this national park include a few hundred

blackbuck The blackbuck (''Antilope cervicapra''), also known as the Indian antelope, is an antelope native to India and Nepal. It inhabits grassy plains and lightly forested areas with perennial water sources. It stands up to high at the shoulder. Ma ...

s (the state animal of

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

porcupine Porcupines are large rodents with coats of sharp spines, or quills, that protect them against predation. The term covers two families of animals: the Old World porcupines of family Hystricidae, and the New World porcupines of family, Erethiz ...

water monitor The Asian water monitor (''Varanus salvator'') is a large varanid lizard native to South and Southeast Asia. It is one of the most common monitor lizards in Asia, ranging from coastal northeast India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, mainland Southeast A ...

short-toed eagle The short-toed snake eagle (''Circaetus gallicus''), also known as the short-toed eagle, is a medium-sized bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as kites, buzzards and harriers. The genus ...

s, Indian pond herons,

egret Egrets ( ) are herons, generally long-legged wading birds, that have white or buff plumage, developing fine plumes (usually milky white) during the breeding season. Egrets are not a biologically distinct group from herons and have the same buil ...

kingfisher Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly colored birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species found in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, ...

cormorant Phalacrocoracidae is a family of approximately 40 species of aquatic birds commonly known as cormorants and shags. Several different classifications of the family have been proposed, but in 2021 the IOC adopted a consensus taxonomy of seven ge ...

s and several other bird species. File:Fan-throated Lizard (Sitana ponticeriana) W2 IMG 7581.jpg, Fan-throated lizard '' Sitana ponticeriana'' File:Orange Blister Beetle (Mylabris pustulata) on Dolichandrone falcata flower W2 IMG 7431.jpg, Orange blister beetle ''

Mylabris pustulata ''Hycleus pustulatus'' is a species of blister beetle found in India, Sri Lanka, China and Java. Adults feed mainly on flowers from a wide range of plant families. The first larval instar is an active triungulin form that is a predator of ...

'' File:White-naped Woodpecker (Chrysocolaptes festivus) in Hyderabad W IMG 7547.jpg, White-naped woodpecker ''

Chrysocolaptes festivus The white-naped woodpecker (''Chrysocolaptes festivus'') is woodpecker which is a widespread but a scarce breeder in the Indian Subcontinent. It is associated with open forest and scrub with some trees. It nests in a tree hole, laying one or ...

Ecotourism

Mahavira Harina Vanasthali is located in the outskirts of

, on Hyderabad - Vijayawada road. It is easily approachable from the city. The park is maintained by the TS Forest Department. Guided tours are available within the park. There is an entry fee for people who wish to enter the park by safari vehicle to view the animals. The entry fee details are available at the park web portal

Flora

* Dry deciduous forest mixed with scrub jungle and grasslands * Sandalwood, rosewood, palas, amalthas, albizzias, acacias, teak * The terrain varies from hilly to gently rolling.

Fauna

* Panther, black buck, cheetal deer, wild boar, civet, porcupine, peacock * There are 30 species of reptiles and over 120 species of birds.

References

External links

Official site
{{Protected areas in Telangana Geography of Hyderabad, India Parks in Hyderabad, India National parks in Telangana Protected areas established in 1975 Tourist attractions in Hyderabad, India 1975 establishments in Andhra Pradesh