Monday, November 30, 2009

Silent Valley National Park

November marked the 25th anniversary of the declaration of the silent valley region in the southwestern Nilgris as a national park. Located in Palakkad district in Kerala, the Silent Valley is home to millions of species of plants and animals and represents a bio-diversity that has evolved over 50million years. If you happen to visit, dont forget to look for the lion tailed macaque - it can't be found anywhere else in the country.

The 'Save Silent Valley' movement started as early as the '70s, opposing the construction of a dam in the area and the preservation of its unique bio-diversity. Through the sustained efforts of various groups and individuals, the area was declared a National Park in 1984 and named the core area of the Nilgris Biosphere Reserve in 1986. It is now the only remaining undisturbed tropical evergreen rainforest in peninsular India.

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