Sariska National Park

One of the most famous wildlife parks of India, Sariska National Park of Rajasthan is known for its wide variety of wildlife. It served as the hunting grounds for the royal family of Alwar in earlier days. The park covers an area of around 479 sq km. It was conferred the status of a national park in 1955, and in 1979 became of one of the few national parks of India where Project Tiger was initiated.

Three zones in which the park has been divided include core zone, buffer zone and tourist zone. Sambhar, wild cats and bear, chital, and antelopes are among the most common resident species that are found in Sariska. You can find a number of hides within the dense forests of the park including the famous hides located in Kalighati and Salopka. You can enjoy outstanding wildlife view from these hides.

Sariska features dry deciduous forests. During monsoon months, the forests are filled with lush foliage. The topography of the region is dominated by the hills. The water bodes and wetland areas are very less in numbers. To deal with this problem, the authorities here have constructed a number of artificial pools at strategic points. These artificial pools solve some of the problems of resident animals during the scorching heat of summer days.

One can find a number of historical structures in the Sariska region. About 22 km within the forest of Sariska lies Pandupole watchtower, an important point of the park. This place is regarded as the place where Pandavas (five brothers who were among the main characters of Mahabharata) spent some time of their exile period. A temple dedicated to Hanuman lies very close to the watchtower. About 20 km from Pandupole watchtower is located the Kankoyari Fort, the place where Dara Sikho, the brother of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, was kept in prison for many years. A few km further is located the 1500-year-old Nilkantha Temple.

A number of speed brakers have been made on the roads within the park to control vehicle speeds in the park area and avoid any unpleasant incident with the wildlife. A number of incidents have been reported in the past involving speeding vehicles running over the animals that came on the tracks. Many programs are being conducted within the park region to train the local tribes about conservation of forests of the national park.

This national park can be visited any time of the year except the rainy months of July and August when it becomes difficult to spot animals as they move to higher grounds.