Namdapha National Park

Namdapha National Park
Travelling to and through the Namdapha National Park is a rare adventure one should definitely not miss. True wilderness can be experienced here, with virgin forests stretching almost 2000 sq. km within the Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh.

Namdapha is a few miles from Miao, a quiet settlement along the clear waters of the Noa Dihing River. Its vast expanse has not been studied in entirety yet, but rare orchids and medicinal plants like the Mishimi Teeta have been reported.

The Namdapha Park is the proud owner of four species of felines – tiger, leopard, snow leopard and clouded leopard. Besides, the Assamese macaque, pig tiled macaque, stumped-tailed macaque and the Hoolock Gibbons can also be sighted here. Other important fauna include elephants, black bear, Indian bison, and quite a few species of deer and reptiles.

This national park offers a chance to see the highly endangered White Winged Wood Ducks. Other bird species in Namdapha include hornbills, jungle fowls and pheasants.

The forest offers accommodation by the banks of the Noa-Dihing at Deban. Camping facilities are available at the river banks at Firmbase and Haldibari. Bulbulia and Camera Point are also preferred by some tourists for the vantage views that they offer. Moti Jheel can be visited for rare sights of birds, while trekking to Gandhigram village, the last settlement touching the Chinese border is an altogether different experience.

Dibrugarh at 160 km in Assam is the nearest airport for Namdapha, and Tinsukia the nearest railhead. You can either take a private vehicle, or the public transport service offered by the Assam and Arunachal state bodies to Miao. It could take another hour to reach Deban from Miao.

An Inner Line Permit is required for Indian tourists to enter Changlang district which can be taken from the offices of the Arunachal Government in Changlang, Dibrugarh, Guwahati, Kolkata and New Delhi. Foreigners need a Restricted Area Permit from the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs.