No other single nation on earth has a more diverse or a richer variety of wildlife and naturescapes than India. This is the land of Rudyard Kipling’s Baloo (the bear), Bagheera (Black Panther), Sher-Khan (Tiger) and Mowgli who are the main character s of his famous work - The Jungle Book which is based on the true story of a boy found alone in the forest of central India as well as Jim Corbett’s land of the man-eaters. In fact a trip into the Indian wild is like an introduction to the who’s who of the animal kingdom. Most of these animals are revered and worshipped.

The diversity of the land is amply explained by the variety of landscapes and habitat that you come across as you criss cross the country. From the Lakes and Marshes of Kashmir and the High Altitude barren Rocky mountain ranges of Ladakh in the north to the Golden Sands of the Thar Desert in the West ; From the Rain Forests of the North East and the Western Ghats, the Evergreen forests & Grasslands of Central India to the tropical forest in the Southern Indian plateau , the Indian wildlife offers an array of National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries.

In its endeavour to protect its most famous cat - The Tiger, India has made determined efforts under the Project Tiger. Today there are 23 national parks and tiger reserves under this project which has not only saved the Royal Bengal Tiger from extinction but has also helped the country boast of sheltering the largest population of Tigers in world.

Most of the National Parks and Sanctuaries of India remain closed during the monsoons (July to September) but some of the rain-shadow regions of higher Himalayas and Ladakh are open to observe special bird and animal life at high-altitude lakes from June to September. Although summer months (April to June) are hot, they provide an excellent opportunity to witness the wildlife close to the water holes.