Satpuda Wildlife and Protected Areas

The Narmada and the Tapti are the only major rivers that flow into the Arabian Sea.

The Narmada originates in Madhya Pradesh and crosses the state, passing swiftly through a narrow valley between the Vindhya Range and spurs of the Satpuda Range. It flows into the Gulf of Khambhat (or Cambay).

The shorter Tapti follows a generally parallel course, between 80-160 km. to the south of the Narmada, flowing through the states of Maharashtra and Gujarat on its way into the Gulf of Khambhat.

The Narmada river, flowing into the Arabian Sea through a rift valley, marks a part of the northern boundary of the state. The rift valley of the Tapti river, also flowing into the Arabian Sea, marks the remaining part of the northern boundary.

These two river valleys are separated by a horst known as the Satpuda Range. Several Protected Areas have been earmarked in the Satpuda region such as Yawal, Ambabarwa, Van, Narnala, Gugamal, Melghat, Pench (Maharashtra), Pench (Madhya Pradesh), Kanha, Satpura National Park, Pachmarhi and Bori.

There is an urgent need for ground surveys and scientific assessment to guide conservation action aimed at maintaining the viability of existing tiger habitats and even expanding them. The Satpuda Foundation has thus been established to highlight the biodiversity of the Central Indian Highlands (i.e. the Satpuda mountain range) and to expose and tackle threats to the area's forests and wildlife through well-coordinated conservation efforts. This seems to be the only way to protect this region, the world's largest contiguous tiger habitat.

Despite its significance as a tiger habitat, the Satpuda region has received little attention and support from NGOs and the government. As a result, the continuity of tiger habitat is increasingly under threat from development and infrastructure projects, logging and poaching.