Banke National Park

Banke National Park

Introduction

Banke National Park (BaNP) was established as 10th Park on 12th of July 2010 which reflect Government’s commitment in Biodiversity conservation at the landscape level. It was also recognized as gift to the earth in 1998.The Park is linked with transboundary Landscape that joins Suhelwa Wildlife Sanctuary in India through national and community forests towards south. It joins with Bardia National Park (BNP) towards west which further links with Katerniaghat Wildlife
Sanctuary in India via Khata corridor, national forest and community forests. There are about 4,861 households with 35,712 populations residing in buffer zone. Indigenous Tharu community, Brahmin, Chhetri, Magar, Tamang, Majhi, and Gurung are living in the buffer zone. 90% of the economy of people depends on agriculture and rest 10% on trade and labor.

Objectives

• To conserve endangered species of wild flora and fauna and their habitat
• To promote eco-tourism
• To facilitate buffer zone for resources management, livelihood promotion, income generation and community development activities
• To strengthen transboundary biological corridor.

Climate

The Park has three distinct seasons: winter, summer and monsoon, each providing a unique experience. From October to early April , weather is dry, days are warm, and nights are cool and pleasant .From April to June, temperature grows up to 450C in May/June. The hot humid days gives way to monsoon rains that lasts until September.
 

Facilities

There are few health posts in the buffer zone and a teaching hospital about 50 km from Park head office, thus a first aid kit including medicines to purify water is advisable. Communication facility is well established. Fuel stations are limited to highway and self arrangement is encouraged for interior visits. Hotels and lodges are available along the southern border of the Park and few other locations with basic services required for tourists.

How to get there

There are regular flights and tourist coaches from Kathmandu to Nepalgunj. It takes approximately an hour drive on a regular or hired bus/taxi from Nepalgunj to Park’s head office. It takes about eight hours bus ride (270 Km) from Mahendranagar and seven hours (250 Km) bus ride from Dhangadi to reach Park’s head office.

Part Regulations

• An entry permit is required to enter in to the Park that can be purchased at entry points with the payment of Rs 500 (foreigners), Rs 200 (SAARC), and Rs 20  (Nepalese) per person per day.
• We anticipate respect of religious and cultural heritage.
• The entry is prohibited between sun set and sun rise.
• Non bio-degradable items should be disposed in the designated places.
• Unauthorized purchase of animal or plant parts is offensive.
• Flora and fauna are fully protected and should not be disturbed.

Location, Area and Boundary

BaNP (550 square kilometer) lies in Banke district and its buffer zone (343 square kilometer) covers parts of Banke, Bardia, Dang and Salyan districts of Mid Western Development Region. It is located between 810 39’29” to 820 12’19” east longitude and 270 58’13” to 280 21’26” north latitude. The core area is delineated by Chisapani-Obary section of east-west highway and cultivated land in the south, the Churia ridge in the north, Shiva khola in the east and Kohalpur- Surkhet road in the west. The core area of the Park (61.5%) entirely falls in Banke district and buffer zone (38.5%) falls in Banke district in the south and west, and Dang and Salyan districts in the north.

Bio-diversity and habitat

BaNP contains an array of eight ecosystem types such as Sal forest, deciduous Riverine forest, savannahs and grasslands, mixed hardwood forest, flood plain community, Bhabar and foot hills of Chure range. It is a home to 124 plants, 34 mammals, more than 300 birds, 24 reptiles, 7 amphibians and 58 fish species. 90% natural forest coverage composed of mainly Sal, Karma, Khair and Sissoo. Three species of mammals (tiger, striped hyaena, four-horned antelope), four species of birds (giant hornbill, black stork,Bengal florican, and lesser florican) and two species of reptiles (gharial crocodile and python) residing in the Park are
protected by the National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act 1973. The habitat of flood plain, foot hill and Churia hill are of prime concern to conserve major focus species such as royal Bengal tiger, Asiatic wild elephant and four-horned antelope. Furthermore, the Rapti River on the south and Babai River on the north forms the life line of the Park.

 

Buffer Zone

To kindle the conservation spirit in the hearts of people, BaNP has focused on participatory resource management in 14 VDCs, seven from Banke district (Khaskusum, Kanchanpur, Mahadevpuri, Kohalpur, Chisapani, Navbasta, Rajhena), three from Dang district (Goltauri, Panchkule, Purandhara), three
from Salyan district (Kalimati Rampur, Kalimati Kalche, Kavrechaur) and one from Surkhet district (Belawa), in the buffer zone. The user committees and the user groups will have their own work plans and financial resources channeled through buffer zone management committee to utilize in conservation, community development income generation, skill enhancement and conservation education program.

Bunjee Jumping in Nepal

Bunjee Jumping in Nepal


While flying in a plane is nice and all, it’s a bit expensive and way too temporary. Sprouting feathers and wings ain’t gonna happen! So, unless you’ve got money to burn or you really believe in evolution, you’re stuck with improving your vertical jump. A strong vertical jump is at the core of some of the most beautiful and graceful movements known to man – Kobe Bryant dunking on the fast break, Michelle Kwan hitting a triple axle, and Barishnikov seemingly floating in air during the ballet. But don’t get me wrong, the vertical jump is also a measure of pure raw power that is used widely throughout professional and college athletics as a performance test. An athlete’s vertical jump can effectively determine how explosive they are and how efficiently they utilize their strength in athletic movements. In fact, in the NFL, the single biggest predictor of success isn’t one’s size, speed, or strength, but rather their vertical jump


Vertical Jump I Know – So Tell Me How I Can Improve It!
Vertical Jump I Know – So Tell Me How I Can Improve It!

 Of course the reason you bought this manual was because just like everybody else you’re wondering, “What is the best routine to give me the hops?" People pursuing the answer to that question are responsible for millions of dollars of revenue per year for the athletic performance industry. Unfortunately, a lot of those dollars are wasted. If you’re like most athletes you’re probably confused as to what exactly you should do. What program works best? What’s the “magic bullet”? Should I be doing plyometrics, isometrics, jump rope, sprints, calf raises, 1 million jumps per day, wearing special shoes, weight training, weighted-vests, stretching, taking special pills, doing special exercises to increase my height, wearing ankle weights, or meditation? The list goes on and on and on. I’ve been part of the athletic performance industry for a very long time now and I’ve seen it all. With so many programs, products, modes, systems, gimmicks, and so much information (mostly mis-information) floating around out there its no wonder the average athlete is so confused. What’s even worse is every program promises the moon but usually does nothing more then empty your wallet. You may be one of these guys who has a long list of programs, gadgets, and systems that you either have tried or are going to try. You probably know plenty of people who’ve had success using one or more of the many programs out there. You may have had success at some of them yourself. Or maybe you haven’t? You may have tried other programs without getting anywhere or maybe you’ve just stalled out and want more. You may have asked the question, “well how come xxxx programs worked for him but not for me?” Why did xxxxx program put 10 inches on so and so’s vertical but made me lose 3? Why can so and so jump but I can’t? The truth is, I can’t tell you what the best program is out there because every program or gadget I’ve seen neglects solid training principles.


You might wonder what motivated me to write this manual. Well, truthfully, I was originally motivated because I was angry. I get questions everyday from people who have been burned by fast-buck artists selling hype without results. I’ve seen a lot of
programs that seem to do no more then extract dollars from unknowing athletes. These programs are put together without much understanding of how the body works, the science or reasoning behind how the training methods work, and the reasons why a system brings gains if in fact it does. So, I decided to do something about this and help do what I can to spread the knowledge. Vertical Jump Secrets? So what exactly is the secret to a great vertical jump? The truth is, there are no secrets or magical systems. There are, however, solid principles that have been around for ages. The magic lies in the application of established principles. The information you’ll find here comes from a variety of resources compiled over the better part of the last century. The approach I talk about is the same approach used by the best athletes and the best leapers in the world. This includes track and field athletes, jumpers, throwers, olympic weightlifters, football players, volleyball players, as well as a few basketball players. You see, olympic or professional athletes achieve their spectacular leaping ability as a "side effect" of effective training principles and practices. Their approach is multifaceted and their vertical jump improves because of effective training designed to improve various other qualities like strength, speed, and overall explosivness. When these qualities improve the vertical jump just comes along for the ride.

Rest assured you won't find any professional or olympic athletes out there searching for the magic jumping cure because there is none. The vertical jump itself is a feat that coaches from government sponsored programs all over the world have spent over 50 years investigating. The number of readily accessible scientific studies on the VJ is astounding. In other words, if there was a magic bullet that was really going to put 20 inches on anyone’s vertical in 6 weeks then you can be sure that a sport scientist would’ve known about it long ago. Fortunately, these same scientists have produced principles that take the guesswork out of everything. What I’ve done is taken all the information, tested it, and compiled it into a format that “zeroes in” on the vertical jump. It’s taken me many years to compile, test, and implement all this information. The information was out there all along but sorting through it all it has been much like searching for needles in haystacks! This meant spending endless hours, days, and nights not only training athletes but also perusing through countless scientific studies and huge complicated texts in an effort to pull out miscellaneous tidbits of effective information. It also meant listening to feedback and advice from other coaches and observing thousands of athletes over the years. I have spent the better part of 10 years researching and practicing the methods outlined in this book. This has meant using myself, and others, as a virtual guinea pig for the last 10 years. I have to admit I’ve loved doing it all! Experimenting, observing, and putting it all into action is the fun part. My only hope is that this manual will make a substantial difference for you. When I write, it is in a no-nonsense, straightforward manner. I prefer to talk about “principles” rather then “secrets”. What I will do is explain the science involved in the

vertical jump and do so in a simplistic manner complete with real-life everyday examples. My goal is not only to tell you what to do but also to help you understand why you’re doing it. There’s a saying that goes, “Feed a man a fish, and feed him for a day.” “Teach him how to fish and feed him for a lifetime.” What I’d like to do is give you both. I promise when I’m done you’ll have a newfound understanding of this athletic display and how to improve it. I will explain the various training methods you might be familiar with and show you how you can easily determine which method of training or combination of training will work best for you or anyone else at any given time. Then I’ll give you several complete programs. Along the way, I’ll also answer practically every question you’ve ever heard on vertical jump development including gadgets, programs, and just about anything else you can think of. SHOW ME THE MONEY Years ago it was thought there wasn't a whole lot if anything we could do to improve jumping ability because it relied solely on genetics. More and more we now know this is utter nonsense. The reason why athletes of years past didn't improve is because they: 1. Didn't train at all or 2.Didn't know how to train correctly. Fortunately, those days are coming to a close. I will admit the large majority of athletes and even a lot of coaches still fit into group #2 - They don't know how to train correctly and a lot of the training they do actually detracts from the qualities necessary to jump high. Yet, in the coming years this will completely change and you can count on it. Once a person understands what is needed for spectacular jumping ability as well as understands the correct training methods and their application - improvement is relatively easy. In fact, near never ending improvement is possible. Let me tell you right now, barring injury and old age, permanent plateaus should never occur providing you know how to correctly train. Regardless of how advanced a person is they can always improve. Now you're probably saying, "That all sounds well and good but how about specific improvements - What exactly can you give me that I want and what makes you an authority?!" For one thing, since everybody is an individual and responds differently, I won’t promise specific results. I can, however, show you how to progress from wherever your starting point might be. I also don't necessarily believe that in order to be a great coach that you have to be a great athlete. However, I recently heard a top strongman say “If you're gonna coach someone to an 800 lb. squat than you gotta know what it feels like to bust your butt for years and work up to an 800 lb. squat yourself”- and I do believe in large part that is true. Science and theory is great but unless you have experience implementing that information there remain many lessons to be learned. There are plenty of people who really seem to know their stuff yet have never practiced what they preach. However, there are also plenty of naturally gifted athletes who can “walk the walk” yet would have a difficult time coaching because they don't know what its like to be average and have to struggle for everything. In between those 2 extremes there is an optimal balance between knowledge and personal experience. I don't want to toot my own horn but just so you realize you don't have to be born with spectacular ability I can tell you that for me personally, over several years and using a similar but less refined approach than what I'll show you here, my vertical jump improved from 23 to 42 inches and my forty-yard dash times improved from 5.0 to 4.27 seconds. If you would like to read about my personal story you can read about it later on in the miscellaneous questions section. However, let me say that I don’t consider what “I” did all that important. What is important is how much of that experience and accumulated knowledge I can pass along to develop others like you. Performance coaches are usually limited in the time they have to work with a specific athlete because of all the obligations that athletes have to deal with. Therefore, it’s rare that a performance coach gets to work one on one with an athlete for an extended period of time without outside interference. Even then you can't control what someone does out of the gym. Yet even with that I expect most people that I work with to surpass their previous 2 years performance improvements within 3 months - and that is usually not too difficult. If you’ve already decided that you’d like to skip the science and background portion and would rather get started right away then you can just skip ahead to the INDIVIDUAL TESTING section and you’re only 5 minutes away! With that said, let’s get to it! Welcome to Vertical Jump 101! Vertical Jump 101 To begin, understand that the vertical jump is basically just a measurement of power. WHAT IS POWER? Power is a side effect of explosive strength and is determined by a simple equation: Power = Force x Velocity To break it down just realize that power and explosive strength simply mean the ability to apply a lot of force in minimal time. The more force you can put out and the faster you can apply that force, the higher your power output will be. In order to understand how to improve power, it helps if we to know how to manipulate each component of the equation, force and velocity