Nagarhole holds India’s third-highest tiger count. It also sits inside the world’s largest wild Asian elephant landscape, and shares its southern border with Bandipur across a single reservoir. It still isn’t a UNESCO World Heritage Site on its own — that recognition is still pending, as part of a larger regional nomination.
MCQ QuestionsIndGeo0112
Nagarhole National Park
India’s third-highest tiger count, one reservoir away from Bandipur, and still waiting on its own UNESCO badge.
1955
Wildlife Sanctuary
The former Wodeyar hunting reserve is set up as a wildlife sanctuary.
1983
Upgraded to National Park
The sanctuary is upgraded to full National Park status.
2003
India’s 37th Tiger Reserve
Nagarhole is declared a Tiger Reserve, area grows to 643.39 sq km.
2012
Reserve Expanded
The reserve grows to its current 847.98 sq km.
The pattern: Nagarhole earned tiger-reserve status and India’s third-highest tiger count, all without ever becoming a UNESCO World Heritage Site on its own — that recognition is still pending, as part of a larger regional nomination.
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Timeline
- 1955: The former Wodeyar hunting reserve is set up as a Wildlife Sanctuary.
- 1983: The sanctuary is upgraded to a National Park.
- 2003: Nagarhole is declared India’s 37th Tiger Reserve, its area grows to 643.39 sq km.
- 2012: The reserve is expanded to its current area of 847.98 sq km.
Must Know
- Nagarhole National Park sits in Kodagu and Mysore districts, Karnataka. It is also called Rajiv Gandhi National Park.
- It was set up as a Wildlife Sanctuary in 1955, on land that was once the Wodeyar dynasty’s private hunting reserve.
- It was upgraded to a National Park in 1983.
- It was declared India’s 37th Tiger Reserve in 2003.
- Its current area covers 847.98 sq km, after a 2012 expansion.
- The 2022 tiger census recorded 141 tigers within the reserve, the third-highest count in India, after Corbett and Bandipur.
- Nagarhole is part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, alongside Bandipur, Mudumalai, and Wayanad.
- It lies immediately north-west of Bandipur National Park, separated only by the Kabini reservoir.
Good to Know
- The park’s name comes from “nagara” (snake) and “hole” (stream). This refers to its network of small streams.
- Its main water sources include the Kabini River, the Lakshmantirtha River, and the Kabini reservoir.
- Nagarhole ranges across the foothills of the Western Ghats, along the Brahmagiri hills.
- It receives about 1,440 mm of rainfall a year.
- The park’s forest is mostly dry deciduous. Teak, crocodile bark, and Indian kino trees grow here.
- Big predators here include the Bengal tiger, Indian leopard, dhole, and sloth bear.
- Elephant herds gather visibly along the Kabini reservoir’s banks, a well-known sight for visitors.
- Nagarhole is not yet its own UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is part of a larger Western Ghats Nilgiri Sub-Cluster, 6,000 sq km, still under UNESCO consideration.
Test Yourself
Great to Know
- Nagarhole held Karnataka’s second-highest elephant population, 831 elephants, per the 2023 count, behind Bandipur’s 1,116.
- Nagarhole completes a five-park contiguous landscape with Bandipur, Mudumalai, Wayanad, and Sathyamangalam. Together, they hold the world’s largest wild Asian elephant population.
- Nagarhole also joins India’s broader network of major conservation histories. See Kaziranga, Gir, Corbett, Sundarbans, Bandipur, Manas, and Great Himalayan National Park.
- Rising infrastructure pressure and mining proposals near Nagarhole and Bandipur have raised concerns about the parks approaching ecological saturation.
Current Affairs
- 19 February 2026: Karnataka began a phased resumption of safaris at Nagarhole, alongside Bandipur, after a suspension that began on 7 November 2025 following fatal tiger attacks. Nagarhole’s safaris resumed at 4 hours a day in the first phase. (Source: Deccan Herald)
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