Jim Corbett National Park, at a glance
India’s oldest national park, and the birthplace of Project Tiger
Founded
1936, as Hailey National Park, India’s and Asia’s first.
Project Tiger
Launched here on 1 April 1973, India’s first tiger reserve.
2022 tiger count
260 tigers, the highest of any reserve in India.
2026 update
Complete mobile-phone ban across all safari zones, from 5 February.
From Hailey National Park to Project Tiger
Five Milestones
- 1936: Hailey National Park is created, covering 323.75 sq km. It is India’s, and Asia’s, first national park.
- 1954-55: the park is renamed Ramganga National Park.
- 1955-56: the park is renamed again, to Corbett National Park, honouring Jim Corbett.
- 1 April 1973: Project Tiger launches at Corbett, making it India’s first tiger reserve.
- 2022: the All India Tiger Estimation counts 260 tigers at Corbett, the highest of any reserve in India.
Q1. True or False: Hailey National Park, established in 1936, was India’s and Asia’s first national park.
Three Names, One Park
India’s First National Park
Jim Corbett National Park sits in Nainital district, Uttarakhand, near Ramnagar. It was established in 1936, as Hailey National Park. It was named after Sir Malcolm Hailey, then Governor of the United Provinces. The park was renamed Ramganga National Park in 1954-55. It was renamed again in 1955-56, to Corbett National Park, honouring Jim Corbett, a hunter turned conservationist. The park’s core area now covers 520.8 sq km.
- Its setting: the park lies in the Himalayan foothills, where mountains meet the Indo-Gangetic plain.
- Varied elevation: elevations range from about 400 to 1,200 metres, giving it genuinely varied terrain.
- A named state: Corbett sits within Uttarakhand, a state carved out of Uttar Pradesh in 2000.
- A popular gateway: Ramnagar town, the nearest railhead, serves as the main access point for most visitors.
Q2. True or False: Jim Corbett National Park has been known by three different names since it was founded.
A National Record, Closely Monitored
The Highest Tiger Count in India
On 1 April 1973, Project Tiger was launched here. Corbett became India’s first tiger reserve. The 2022 All India Tiger Estimation recorded 260 tigers at Corbett, the highest count of any tiger reserve in India. Corbett is administered by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA).
A careful management task: Corbett’s high density raises real risk of territorial conflict among tigers themselves. Managing it well means close monitoring, not just celebrating the record.
Q3. True or False: Corbett’s high tiger count gives it one of the highest tiger densities of any reserve in the world.
A Hunter Who Became a Conservationist
Early Protection and Jim Corbett
Formal protection of this forest began in 1868. The British forest department restricted cultivation and grazing here. In 1879, the area became a reserve forest, with restricted timber felling. The original 1936 reserve banned hunting from the start. Only domestic timber cutting was allowed. A 797.72 sq km buffer zone was added in 1991. It includes the Kalagarh forest division and the Sonanadi Wildlife Sanctuary (301.18 sq km). Together with this buffer, the full Corbett Tiger Reserve spans well over 1,300 sq km.
- Corbett the man: Jim Corbett tracked man-eating tigers and leopards in the Kumaon region, later becoming a conservationist and writing “Man-Eaters of Kumaon.”
- A change of heart: Corbett shifted from hunter to conservationist after witnessing the region’s rapid decline in tiger and leopard numbers.
- A rare tribute: renaming an entire national park after him remains a rare honour, reflecting how directly his story shaped the park’s identity.
Forest, Fauna, and a Wider Landscape
The Ramganga River runs through the park. A large lake formed by the Ramganga Dam is another key feature. The Kosi River flows along part of the park’s eastern boundary. About 73% of the park is dense moist deciduous forest, dominated by sal trees. Grasslands cover roughly 10% more. Corbett holds around 50 mammal species, 580 bird species, and 25 reptile species.
- Other predators: leopards, wild dogs (dholes), and sloth bears share the park’s forests with its tigers.
- River reptiles: mugger crocodiles and gharials are both found along the park’s rivers and lake.
- Elephants too: Corbett holds a substantial resident population of wild Asian elephants. It also forms part of a larger elephant corridor across the wider Terai region.
- Safari zones: Dhikala, the most popular zone, sits deep within the core area. Bijrani, Jhirna, and Dhela offer different terrain and sightings. Some zones close during the monsoon.
Q4. True or False: Jim Corbett, the man the park is named after, was the colonial administrator who founded it in 1936.
Four Reserves, One Order
UPSC asked for the correct north-to-south order of four tiger reserves: Corbett, Sariska, Simlipal, and Periyar. The answer: Corbett, then Sariska, then Simlipal, then Periyar. Ordered by latitude, Corbett (Uttarakhand) sits furthest north. Sariska (Rajasthan) comes next, then Simlipal (Odisha), then Periyar (Kerala) furthest south.
Q5. True or False: among Corbett, Sariska, Simlipal, and Periyar, Corbett sits furthest north.
Think it through, before reading on. Corbett and Gir are both named after conservation stories, and both now hold national tiger or lion records. But one honours a hunter-turned-conservationist, and the other a ruler’s hunting ban. Why might that difference matter for how each park tells its own story?
Show the explanation
Gir’s story centres on a single top-down decision. The Nawab of Junagadh banned hunting in 1900, then lost his political power at Independence. Corbett’s story is different. It centres on a person whose views visibly changed over his lifetime, from hunter to conservationist. His writing also shaped how ordinary readers thought about tigers. That’s likely why India renamed an entire park after Corbett, not after Hailey, the colonial administrator who actually created it in 1936. A park’s name can carry a chosen narrative, not just a historical fact. That’s worth noticing whenever a protected area is named after a person rather than a place.
Current Affairs
A Mobile-Phone Ban, and Relocated Tigers
On 5 February 2026, a complete mobile-phone ban took effect across all of Corbett’s safari zones. It followed a Supreme Court direction covering tiger reserves nationwide. Visitors must now deposit phones in lockers at entry gates, to reduce crowding and disturbance around tiger sightings. Separately, in May 2025, five tigers were relocated from Corbett to the western zone of Rajaji Tiger Reserve. This completed an NTCA-approved programme begun in 2016. The move was driven by Corbett’s own high tiger density, against a near-empty western Rajaji.
Q6. True or False: Corbett’s tiger population is now approaching the park’s ecological carrying capacity.
Quick Q&A
Where is Jim Corbett National Park?
Nainital district, Uttarakhand, near Ramnagar.
What was the park originally called, and after whom?
Hailey National Park, after Sir Malcolm Hailey, Governor of the United Provinces.
What national programme launched at Corbett in 1973?
Project Tiger, making Corbett India’s first tiger reserve.
Why were tigers relocated from Corbett to Rajaji in 2025?
Corbett’s tiger density is approaching carrying capacity, while western Rajaji was nearly empty.
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