Avian enthusiasts visiting the state of Haryana, India have a delightful destination to explore. The Sultanpur Bird Sanctuary is a favourite haunt of record numbers of endemic and migratory birds. Found in Farukh Nagar Road of the Gurgaon district, only 15 kilometers away from Gurgaon and 40 kilometers from Delhis Dhaula Kuan, this site is protected by the state government as a National Park.
The marshy lands of the reservation, fed liberally and flooding during the monsoon months, is ideal breeding ground for fish, insects and crustaceans which in turn becomes prey for the birds they attract. Although the area has always been locally famous for its congregations of exotic birds, it first came to official attention when bird enthusiast Mr. Peter Jackson petitioned the then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi to make it into an officially sanctioned bird reserve. The area, which spans over 350 acres of marshland and field, was first declared a Bird Sanctuary and finally gained its rightful status as a National Park in 1991.
The park is today home to over 250 species of birds, over 100 of whom are migratory birds hailing from places as far-flung as the Himalayas, Siberia, Afghanistan and even Europe. Winter is the ideal time to visit as the grounds become a vista of flittering color as migratory birds arrive in great flocks to find new feeding grounds in warmer climes. Siberian cranes, teals, rosy pelicans and flamingos, Eurasian widgeons, starlings and sandpipers of many varieties are among these annual visitors, as are the musical Asian koels, the Eurasian golden orioles, cuckoos, comb ducks and bee-eaters. At least one and half hours is given as the requisite time to do a full tour of this bird sanctuary, whose wonders are not limited to the feathered friends. A number of rare animals also make the park their habitat, such as sambar and hog deer, blackbucks, wild cats and mongoose, hyenas, hedgehogs and porcupines, antelope and even leopards.
The Department of Wild Life Preservation continues to make the area even more attractive to both eco-tourists and the wildlife through facilitating the proliferation of vegetation, with special emphasis on trees favoured by particular birds. Many tourist facilities have also been provided, such as four observatory towers for bird-watching, an education and information centre as well as a dedicated library complete with film clips and observation equipment. The Interpretation Centre, dedicated to famous ornithologist Dr. Salim Ali, features a spectacular montage of pictures depicting the bird denizens of the park, captioned by informative write-ups.
Tourists staying at nearby
Gurgaon hotels enjoy the dual advantages of being close to the park, as well as having the commercial attractions of Delhi near at hand. The Leela Kempinski Gurgaon, Delhi (NCR) is one of the highly-regarded leisure and
business hotels Delhi, providing comfortable, centralized accommodation and a host of business and recreational facilities.
