Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP)

About Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP):

• Location: It is located within suburban region of Mumbai, Maharashtra. The park covers about 20% of Mumbai’s geographical area.
• It is popularly known as “Krishnagiri Upvan” or “Borivali National Park”.
• The 2400-year-old Kanheri caves are sculpted out of the rocky cliff that lies within the park.
• Flora: Kadamba, Teak, Karanj, Shisham, and species of acacia, Ziziphus, euphorbias etc, are found in this National Park.
• Fauna: Chital, Rhesus macaque, Bonnet macaque, Black-naped, Bengal Tiger etc. 

Key facts about the Kanheri Caves:

• The Kanheri Caves are a group of caves and rock-cut monuments cut into a massive basalt outcrop in the forests of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park.
• The Kanheri caves comprise more than 110 different rock-cut monolithic excavations and are one of the largest single excavations in the country.
• These excavations were primarily undertaken during the Hinayana phase of Buddhism but also have several examples of the Mahayana stylistic architecture as well as a few printings of the Vajrayana order.
• The name Kanheri is derived from ‘Kanhagiri’ in Prakrit and occurs in the Nasik inscription of the Satavahana ruler Vasisthiputra Pulumavi.
• They contain Buddhist sculptures and relief carvings, paintings and inscriptions, dating from the 1st century CE to the 10th century CE.
• The earliest reference to Kanheri is ascribed to Fa-Hein, who visited India during 399-411 CE.