Royal Bardia National Park is the largest park in the lowland Terai covering an area of 968 sq. km. The park situated in Nepal’s Western Terai was established to protect representative ecosystems and conserve tiger and its prey species. Initially, a small area was gazetted as the Royal Karnali Wildlife Reserve in 1976. When this area was protected, approximately 1500 people of the Babai valley were resettled outside the park allowing the vegetation and wildlife to flourish. In 1982, it was renamed as Royal Bardia Wildlife Reserve, and in 1984 it was extended to its current size. The reserve was given the status of a National Park in 1988. Greater One-horned Rhinoceros were Tran located from Royal Chitwan National Park in 1986, 1991, and 1999. In 1997, an area of 327 sq. km surrounding the park was declared as a buffer zone which consists of forests and private lands. The buffer zone is jointly managed by the park and local communities. Together they initiate community development activities and manage natural resources in the buffer zones.
