The Hindu : Metro Plus Chennai / Travel : Silent Valley National Park

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Saturday, Aug 20, 2005

Metro Plus Chennai

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SANCTUARY SPOTLIGHT

Silent Valley National Park

Locally known as Sairandhrivanam or `the forest in the valley', the fragile tropical evergreen forest, probably the last of its kind, is home to nearly a thousand varieties of flowering plants and over hundred orchids and many rare herbal plants. It is also home to the Nilgiri langur and the lion-tailed macaque, both of which have been listed as endangered animals.

The park has several high peaks and the Kunthi river runs through it. In the 1970s and 1980s, the park came into focus when the Kerala State Electricity Board decided to construct a hydel power project in this region. In 1984, the park was again re-notified as a national park.

The park is surrounded by the Attappadi Reserve Forest in the east, and the forests of the Palghat and Nilambur divisions in the west and south.

It was made core area of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve in 1986, declared a reserved land under the Forest Act in 1888 and later notified as a reserve forest by the Government of Madras in 1914.

Trekking through this terrain is not easy and you will have to watch out for leeches. You are only allowed to go up to Sairandhiri, the site of the dam 23 km from Mukkali.

To venture beyond that point requires special permission from the Conservator of Forests, Northern Region, Palakkad.

Area: 77 sq. km, 89.52 sq.km, in the Kundali Hills of the Western Ghats

Best time to visit: September to March

Animals: Nilgiri langur, the lion-tailed Macaque, giant Malabar squirrel, elephant, tiger, leopard, wild bear, nilgai, sambar, great Indian hornbill, the Nilgiri laughing thrush, hundreds of species of butterflies and moths including the Ceylon frog moth and viper

How to get there:

Road: Mannarkkad (40 km)

Rail: Palakkad (75 km)

Air: Thrissur (24 km) or Coimbatore (55 km)

Also visit: Parambikulam, Choolanur Peacock Sanctuary, Attappadi or Mountain Valley

Where to stay:

The Forest Department Rest House at Mukkali (23 km) or at private hotels at Amballoor.

Contact:

*Wildlife Warden,

Silent Valley National Park

Mannarkkad, Palakkad, Kerala, Pin-628582

Ph: 04924-222056