National Parks, Wildlife Sanctuaries, and Conservation Reserves

Abstract

The Uttarakhand Himalaya represents one of the world’s biogeographical regions with rich biodiversity. To conserve and protect the species—floral, faunal, and avifaunal—the state department of forest established parks and sanctuaries in different locations of the state. These are the major forest-protected areas. Within the forest areas, wetlands are situated, which support forest ecosystems. The primary objective of this chapter is to examine the national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, and conservation reserves including the biosphere reserves of Uttarakhand. It also studies the potential of ecotourism in these parks and sanctuaries and describes tourists’ inflows. It has been noticed from this study that the state provides a suitable base for ecotourism development, which leads to enhancing the income and economy of the rural people. In the meantime, the conservation of parks and sanctuaries is inevitable.