National Parks
The Minister of state (I/C) for Environment and Forests Smt. Jayanthi Natarajan stated in Lok Sabha today that there are 668 Protected Areas (including 102 National Parks, 515 Wildlife Sanctuaries, 47 Conservation Reserves, 4 Community Reserves) and 198 Zoos including 23 circuses in the country.The Minister said that the financial assistance for development and upkeep of Protected Areas is provided under the Centrally Sponsored Schemes of ‘Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats’ and ‘Project Tiger’.
Briefing the members further the Minister added that the Ministry has modified the existing Centrally Sponsored Schemes by adding more components and activities for providing better protection and conservation to wildlife and its habitats. For the protection and improvement of zoos across the country, the Central Zoo Authority has formulated detailed guidelines for the scientific management of zoos for adoption and implementation by the zoo operators.