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Tal
Chhapar Sanctuary is situated in the Churu district of Northwestern
Rajasthan in the Shekhawati area. It is 205 km from Jaipur and is
located on road from Ratangarh to Sujangarh.
The Tal Chappar sanctuary lies in the Sujangarh Tehsil of Churu
District.
It
lies on Nokha- Sujangarh state Highway and is located at a distance of
about 82 km from Churu & about 130 km from Bikaner.
Tal
Chappar sanctuary, situated on the fringes of the Thar desert, is
known as home to about 2,000 black bucks.
The nearest
Railway station is Chappar which lies on Degana – Churu – Rewari metre
gauge line of North Western Railways. The nearest Airport is Sanganer
(Jaipur) which is at a distance of 215 km from Chappar. The flourishing
grassland ecosystem of Tal Chappar contains a tale of its own. Since
1940s, it was a hunting ground and horse pasture belonging to Maharaja
Ganga Singh of Bikaner. The area come to known as a wildlife sanctuary
in 1966. The Geology of the zone is obscured by the wind blown
over-burden. Few small hillocks and exposed rocks of slate and
quartzite are found in the western side of the sanctuary. Area between
hillocks and the sanctuary includes the watershed area of the
sanctuary.
The
Sanctuary is generally flooded by water during the heavy rains but
with salt mining going on in the watershed. Hardly any rain water
falling on the hills reach the Sanctuary.
Nothing
much grew in these parts except the Prosopis juliflora, an invasive
plant species that had pushed out native plants.
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Tal Chappar sanctuary would be developed as a major tourist
destination |
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Tal
Chappar sanctuary would be maintained as a main tourist
destination to play a role of a catalyst for the development of
the area, said chief minister, Ashok Gehlot. He added that the
government would provide all help to develop Tal Chappar as a
major tourist destination. The sanctuary is home to blackbucks.
With the inflow of domestic and foreign tourists to the sanctuary,
this would also open up the doors of employment opportunities for
the locals. He said development plan of this area would be made
with the total involvement of the locals and officials who works
at grass root level.
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Location of Tal Chhapar Sanctuary |
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The Tal
Chhapar sanctuary is situated on the fringe of the Great Indian
Desert. Tal Chhapar nestles a unique refuge of the most elegant
Antelope encountered in India, “the Black buck”. Tal Chhaper
sanctuary, with almost flat tract and interspersed shallow low
lying areas, has open grassland with scattered Acacia and Prosopis
trees which give it an appearance of a typical Savanna. The word
“Tal” means plane land. The rain water flows through shallow low
lying areas and collect in the small seasonal water ponds.
Situated at a distance of 220 km from Jaipur and 80 km from
Mandawa, the Tal Chhapar Wildlife Sanctuary is a very small but
rich wildlife sanctuary in Churu district of Rajasthan. A flat
saline depression, Tal Chhapar Sanctuary is widely known for its
enchanting natural beauty and unique and fragile ecosystem.
Positioned in on the way of the migratory passage of exotic birds,
the Tal Chhapar Sanctuary is Well known for its rich population of
Black Bucks and thousands of beautiful migratory birds, especially
the harriers, who pass over the sanctuary during the month of
September.
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Major Attractions of the Sanctuary |
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Truly a
bird lover's paradise, the Tal Chhapar Wildlife Sanctuary comes
alive with the beautiful color of thousands of migratory birds,
especially the harriers, including Montagur's Harriers, Marsh
Harriers, Pale Harriers and Hen Harriers. Other birds commonly
seen in the sanctuary include Imperial Eagles, Tawny Eagles,
Short-toed Eagle, Sparrow Hawks, Skylarks, Crested Larks, Brown
Doves, Green Bee-eaters, Black Ibis and Demoiselle Cranes, which
will be here till March. Blue-checked Bee-eaters and Green
Bee-eaters are commonly found in Tal Chappar, for this is their
breeding place.
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Best Time to Visit |
The
best time to visit the Tal Chhapar Wildlife Sanctuary in Churu is
from September to March. The Gajner Wildlife Sanctuary can easily
be reached by road from Mandawa (80 km) and Jaipur (220 km).
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