Rani Jhansi National Park was established in 1996. It is spread over 3 islands in Ritchie’s Archipelago namely,John Lawrence, Henry Lawrence and Outram. This park has a total area of 156.20sq km comprising of land and the marine ecosystem surrounding the three islands.
Rani Jhansi national park was established especially to protect the rich and rare marine life found in abundance in the clear surrounding waters. Rani Jhansi national park is unofficially abbreviated as RJNP.
Primarily known for its faunal diversity, this park is home to about 45 varieties of reptiles including the Andaman water monitor, 12 amphibians and a number of mammals, in addition to a few rare species of gastropods. However, the special features of this national park are the fruit eating bats and sea turtles.
The sea turtles found here are Olive Ridley, Green Sea, Leatherback and Hawksbill. The surrounding waters of John Lawrence and Henry Lawrence islands are also full of rare coral species including many soft corals.
The islands of RJNP have a tropical climate and are covered with lowland evergreen rain forests, semi evergreen rain forests and mangroves. The rainy season here lasts for almost 8 months leaving only 4 dry months for a visit.
There is little or no land farming, making the locals depend upon tourism for livelihood. There is no indigenous tribe here. The immigrant inhabitants here speak Nicobarese, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Bengali.
The best time to visit is from January to April since these are the only dry months of the year. There is no road connection and thus, you’ll have to take a ferry from Port Blair. Since only day trips are allowed here, no accommodation is available at the park. For more detailed and accurate information on packages and timings it is best to get in touch with park officials.