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Geographically, the district lies between 21° 52' to 22° 34' north
latitudes and 73° 28' to 74° 17' east longitudes on the banks of the
STUDY AREA
River Narmada. The district shares its border with Dahod in the
Chhota Udepur is a district located in central north, Madhya Pradesh in the east, Narmada district in the south
Gujarat. The central Gujarat region includes and Vadodara and Panchmahal districts in the west.
Vadodara, Mahisagar, Anand, Kheda,
Panchmahal, Dahod, Chhota Udepur, and Topography
Ahmedabad districts. Chhota Udepur district The area is a part of the Vindhya Mountain Range, which

was earlier part of Vadodara, then carved out extends from east to west and serves as a natural border between
of it in 2013 (en.m.wikipedia.org). The total Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. It defines the terrain of the region.
area of the district is spread over 3087 km2 The forest area is covered with numerous hills, several small rivers,
with a forest area of 757.04 km2. There are six valleys, streams, and boulders with mixed forest, a suitable habitat
forest ranges in Chhota Udepur forest division for the leopards and sloth bears. The range consists of low hills
viz. Chhota Udepur, Pavi-Jetpur, Rangpur, with an average elevation of around 600 meters. These hills are
Kvant, Naswadi and Dolariya range. interspersed with fertile valleys that get water from the numerous
rivers and streams passing through them. The Panam, Vasvo, and
The forest area of Chhota Udepur is very Orsang are just a few of the significant rivers that pass through
important as it connects two wildlife these areas.
sanctuaries in central Gujarat, Jambughoda landscape photo
and Ratanmahal wildlife sanctuaries. This non-protected forest Water Resources

area between two wildlife sanctuaries forms a very potential The area is irrigated by the rivers Orsang, Vasvo, and other
wildlife corridor and hence it is notified as an eco-sensitive zone minor tributaries of the Narmada. The Orsang River originates in
(shown in map below). the Bhavra forest of Madhya Pradesh and flows into Gujarat close
to the town of Chhota Udepur. Some areas of the district have
elevated nitrate levels, raising concern and the necessity to
improve the quality of groundwater (Patel et al., 2022). Apart from
the rivers, the Sukhi reservoir, constructed on the river Sukhi near
the village of Dungarvat is also a source of water for the villagers,
forest habitats and wildlife.

Climate
The wet season is oppressive and mostly cloudy; the dry season
is mostly clear, and it is hot year-round. Over the course of the
year, the temperature typically varies from 13 °C to 42 °C and is
rarely below 10 °C or above 44 °C. The average annual temperature

is 27.2 °C in the region. About 1115 mm of precipitation falls per
year. May is the hottest month of the year here with an average
temperature of 33.6 °C, and January is the coldest month of the
year with the lowest average temperature around 10 °C.

© Shalu Mesaria

07 Sloth bear Conservation Education Programme 08 Sloth bear Conservation Education Programme
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