Bhopal, May 1: The scenario is beautiful and hard to explain in words. On a summer evening on the banks of the Upper Lake in the twilight, the whole world seems to be enchantingly beautiful. At this time of the day watching the animals moving about in Van Vihar National Park is a rare experience.

Human beings and animals have been friends since the beginning. We started rearing cow, goat, buffalo and camel for their milk. Horse and camel were being used as mode of transport. Donkey had the utility to carry load from one place to another. Dog and cat have been our pet animals.

Earlier, only the king had the authority to hunting. He used to do it by way of hobby, that too once in a year. There were forests everywhere and the number of wild animals was countless. No one else dared to hunt down animals in that era. The time has changed. There is no king but the law against killing of wild animals is still there. But even then those with money and muscle power do not bother about the law. The result is the dwindling number of wild animals due to poaching.

For the last several decades the governments have started to protect wild animals through sanctuaries, National Parks and Tiger Reserves so that poaching could be curtailed and their number can rise. Even then, instead of increasing, the number of animals is coming down. Some of the species of animals are given special care because they have become rare.

The TV cartoon serial, Jungle Book (of writer Rudyard Kipling) telecast in Doordarshan in Hindi was famous among the children and the aged alike. The serial depicted the love and care between human and animals.

Today, very few can go the forests and watch the wild animals in the sanctuaries or National Parks alone. For Bhopalites, Van Vihar is the only place where they could see a number of wild animals roaming in the open. Watching the wild animals be it the majestic lion, frightening tiger or the beautiful deer - is an experience one will cherish for a long, long time.

Our capital city is very famous for its landscape. It is called the city of lakes and hills. The Van Vihar or National Park is on the hill on the banks of the Upper Lake. Here watching the wild animals is a unique experience. Here one can have a look from a short distance at local and foreign birds, Tiger, Lion, Deer, Leopard, wild bear, white bear, monkeys, several kind of snakes etc.

A large number of wild animals have been brought to the National Park when the summer started. The place is crowded these days as more and more Bhopalites and tourists are visiting the Park every day. The Bhopal Today Team

reporter talked to some of the visitors to know as to what they think of the animals in the Park.

Memory will be cherished

Mohini Sethi is in Bhopal to visit her daughter. She liked Bhopal, particularly the Van Vihar very much. Watching of wild animals was a pleasant experience. 'I also like the snake park here, even though I am afraid of the snakes', she said. I will not forget the visit, she added.

I liked Van Vihar

Deepak Kareere had only heard about the beauty of Van Vihar so far. The natural beauty and the wild animals attract people to this place. Today, I thought of visiting this beautiful place with friends. It is better than what I had heard about. I saw most of the wild animals like tiger, Barasingha, birds, deer, etc here.

I liked the bear

For Ishika the wild bear is more interesting. She came from Nagpur along with her grandmother. She has seen other animals too. Now she can boast to her parents about her visit and what she saw here.

The deer is beautiful

According to Dilip Gour, the capital city has every thing for the tourists. There is no dearth of places to visit. The Van Vihar on the banks of Upper Lake is a unique world of wild animals. 'Today I could spare some time and visited here with friends for watching the wild animals. I like the deer. I even wished secretly if I could take one of them to home!