Nanda Devi National Park

Nanda Devi National Park along with the nearby Valley of Flowers was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988. Nanda Devi National Park is a forest reserve cum national park (established 1982) in the area surrounding the Nanda Devi peak and covers an area of 630.33 sq kms. The name Nandadevi has been inspired from the name of the resident deity of the area Nanda Devi (a manifestation of Goddess Parvati). The Nanda Devi peak is basically a glacial basin with a height of about 7,817 m (25,646 ft) drained by Rishi Ganga through the sharp Rishi Ganga gorge.

Location
Nanda Devi National Park is located in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand, in the transition range between the Zanskar range and Himalayan foothills.

Best Time to Visit
The Nandadevi National Park remains open only for six months, from 1st May to 31st October every year.

Rules for Visit
Visitors must move in groups and not venture alone in any condition. Each group will have five members and one registered guide has to accompany each group. A maximum of two groups per day and four groups per week are allowed. Children only above 14 years of age will be allowed for park visit. It is mandatory for all visitors to obey the list of rules and wildlife protection act inside the park area.

Suggestion
Carry woolen clothing in layers since it sometimes gets very chilly there. Take along an extra pair of sturdy trekking shoes and hiking equipment because one has to walk a lot. Apply sunscreen and mosquito repellent to save yourself from sun burns and mosquito bites. Lastly, consult your doctor before coming since high altitude may be adverse in cases of asthma or heart troubles.

Flora
The flora is found abundantly in the Nanda Devi National Park since the confluence of two mountain ranges provides a tremendous range of diversity to the area. It is known that the local populations use a total of 97 species of plants. The breakdown includes 55 as food plants, 17 for medicine, 16 for fuel, 15 as fodder, 11 for religious purposes, eight for building houses, six for miscellaneous, five as tools and two as fibers. There are also many rare and almost extinct plants like Saussurea sudhanshui, Nardostachys grandiflora, Picroehiza kurrooa, Cypripedium elegans, C. himalaicum, Dioscorea deltoidea and Allium stracheyi.

Fauna
Nanda Devi National Park is well-known for the profusion of its varied 83 species animal population. It is common to find rare species here like Bharal (Pseudois nayaur), Himalayan Musk Deer (Moschus chrysogaster), Mainland Serow (Capricornis sumatraensis), Himalayan Tahr (Hemitragus jemlahicus), Goral (Nemorhaedus goral), Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia), Common Leopard (Panthera pardus), Himalayan Black Bear (Selenarctos thibetanus), Common Langur (Presbytis entellus), Rhesus Macaque (Macaca mullata). Also, there are about 114 avian species and 27 species of butterflies alone.

Source: http://www.bharatonline.com/uttarakhand/wildlife/nanda-devi.html

Rajaji National Park

Rajaji National Park was established in 1983 amidst the bio diverse area of the Shivalik Hill range on the Himalayan foothills. The national park’s name has been dedicated to C. Rajagopalachari, fondly known as Raja Ji. He was a prominent freedom fighter, the 1954 recipient of Bharat Ratna and the second and last Governor-General of Independent India. The reserve is spread over 820.42 square kms, covering almost three districts of Uttaranchal (Haridwar, Dehradun and Pauri Garhwal). The park has 10 comfortable guest houses and visitors are allowed to cook their own food.

Location
Rajaji National Park is situated in the foothills of the Shiwalik Eco-System near Dehradun, Haridwar and Ramgarh.

Best Time to Visit
The park is open from 15th November to 15th June every year. It is closed during monsoons. The altitude level ranges from 300 to 1345 m above sea level so the temperature hovers around 13.1^o C (minimum) to 38.9^o C (maximum).

Accessibility
There are three ways to enter the Rajaji National Park. The first is through the Dehradun to Delhi State Highway which forms the western boundary of the park. The second is through Dehradun-Doiwala-Rishikesh-Haridwar State Highway which passes through the forests of Ramgarh, Motichur, Kunao and Chila. One can also reach the park through Saharanpur by train. One has to get off at Mohand and them its and hour’s journey by road.

Flora
The stable vegetation of the park is basically Northern Tropical Moist Deciduous Forest and can be separated into six categories. The divisions include the Sal forest (the dominant tree vegetation in the area), the mixed forest (which includes trees like Acacia catechu and Vetiveria zizanioides), the riverside forest which has the vegetation occurring in water logged areas like moss, the ‘scrub’ forest is the dry deciduous forest area, the grassland and the sub-tropical pine forest on the higher Shiwalik range with small or stunted trees such as Pinus roxburghii (Chir). The other vegetation species consist of Haldu, Bachera, Kharpat, Phauri, Amaltas, Peepal, Bel, Kachnar, Ber and Karaunda.

Fauna
The Rajaji National Park has approximately 49 species of mammals, 315 species of birds, 49 species of reptiles, 10 species of amphibians and 49 of Piscean species. This park has the largest population of elephants in Uttarakhand and a large population of tigers and leopards. The other inhabitants of the park consist of Wild Cat, Goral, Rhesus Macaque, Himalayan Yellow Throated Marten, Monitor, Lizard, Indian Hare, Sloth, Himalayan Black Bear, King Cobra, Jackal, Barking Deer, Sambar, Wild boar, Indian Langur, Indian Porcupine and Pythons. The population of birds consists of the Great Pied Hornbill, Himalayan Pied Kingfisher, Sparrows, Fire Tailed Sunbird and the Peacock (Indian National Bird).

Source:http://www.bharatonline.com/uttarakhand/wildlife/rajaji.html

Uttarakhand Wildlife

Uttarakhand is a wonderful tourist destination. Thousands of people go there every year to rejuvenate themselves amidst the mountains. The mountains in Uttarakhand are home to rare species of plants and animals which are protected by sanctuaries and reserves. The major sanctuaries and reserves of the area are Jim Corbett National Park, Valley of Flowers National Park, Govind National Park, Nanda Devi National Park, Rajaji National Park and Assan Barrage Bird Sanctuary.

The most common animals found in Uttarakhand are wild sheep, goat, oxen, antelopes and butterflies but rare and endangered animals such as Musk Deer, Snow Leopard, Ghorals and Monal are also found here.

Jim Corbett National Park is one of the most famous wildlife sanctuaries of Uttarakhand. Established by the British government as a reserve area to protect tigers, today one can observer them in their natural habitat.

The Nanda Devi National Park & Valley of Flowers have been named as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Since the Valley of Flowers resembles Kashmir when in full bloom, it is worth giving a visit.

Both Rajaji National Park and Assan Barrage Bird Sanctuary are very close to Dehradun, the capital city of Uttarakhand. Though one cannot cover both of them in a day, one can certainly make Dehradun the base and then explore both the wonderful places, especially for a wildlife aficionado.

Assan Barrage Bird Sanctuary
Assan Barrage Bird Sanctuary was established in the year 1967 as a small man-made wetland at the convergence point of Rivers Yamuna and Asan in Dehradun. Since it is near to Dhalipur power house, it is also known as Dhalipur Lake.

Govind National Park
Govind National Park, also known as Govind Pashu Vihar, was established to save the increasingly endangered species. This sanctuary is spread over an area of 957.969 sq. kms with a varying altitude of 1,300 m to 6,323 m.

Jim Corbett National Park
Jim Corbett National Park used to be just another Himalayan forest until in 1936 it was demarcated as a reserve area by the British Government. Jim Corbett Park is spread over 520 sq kms and is covered with huge stretches of Savannah type grasslands and Sal forests.

Nanda Devi National Park
Nanda Devi National Park along with the nearby Valley of Flowers was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988. Nanda Devi National Park is a forest reserve cum national park (established 1982) in the area surrounding the Nanda Devi peak and covers an area of 630.33 sq kms.

Rajaji National Park
Rajaji National Park was established in 1983 amidst the bio diverse area of the Shivalik Hill range on the Himalayan foothills. The national park’s name has been dedicated to C. Rajagopalachari, fondly known as Raja Ji.

Valley of Flowers
Valley of Flowers is as full of flowers as of exotic animal species and birds. It is a sight to watch, explore and absorb. The valley is a riot of colors and fragrances so unique and exotic that one needs an entire day just to take in whatever nature is giving us that time.

Source: http://www.bharatonline.com/uttarakhand/wildlife/index.html

SOFTATEK Is

Vision
"To be a globally respected corporation that provides best-of-breed business solutions, leveraging technology, delivered by best-in-class people."


Mission
"To achieve our objectives in an environment of fairness, honesty, and courtesy towards our clients, employees, vendors and society at large."


Values
We believe that the softest pillow is a clear conscience. The values that drive us underscore our commitment to:

* Customer Delight: To surpass customer expectations consistently
* Leadership by Example: To set standards in our business and transactions and be an exemplar for the industry and ourselves
* Integrity and Transparency: To be ethical, sincere and open in all our transactions
* Fairness: To be objective and transaction-oriented, and thereby earn trust and respect
* Pursuit of Excellence: To strive relentlessly, constantly improve ourselves, our teams, our services and products to become the best

Leaders." We are committed to remain among the industry's leading employers.


Quality Focus
'In God we trust, everyone else must come with data' is an oft-heard phrase at Softatek. We constantly benchmark our services and processes against globally recognized quality standards