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Think of this: 366 bird species, 379 floral species, 50 species of fish, 13 species of snakes, five species of lizards, seven amphibian species, seven turtle species and a variety of other invertebrates… Keoladeo National Park or Keoladeo Ghana National Park (formerly known as Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary) is among the best-known places in Rajasthan. The reserve forest covers an area of 29sq.km, locally called Ghana, which includes dry grasslands, woodlands, swamps and wetlands.

Formerly known as the Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary, Keoladeo National Park or Keoladeo Ghana National Park is a famous avifauna sanctuary in Bharatpur, Rajasthan. While there are around 350 species of birds that are permanent residents of this park, it is known for the migratory visitors including the critically endangered Siberian Crane.

The building of the Ajan Bund by Maharaja Suraj Mal (the ruler of Bharatpur between 1726 and 1763) led to the flooding of a natural depression and created conducive conditions for various life forms to thrive. Since the wetlands in the park are not natural, they are dependent on the monsoon and on water pumped in traditionally from the Ajan Bandh reservoir. In the late 19th century, the park was a hunting ground for the Maharajas of Bharatpur and annual duck shoots were organised for the British viceroys. In 1938, according to some estimates, over 4273 ducks like mallards and teals were shot.

In 1971, the area was declared a protected sanctuary and established as a National Park on March 10, 1982. In 1985, it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site because it is an important wintering site for the migratory birds from Central Asia. In winter, one can spot waterfowl from Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, China, and Siberia in this park.

Species that have been spotted include gadwalls, shovellers, common teals, tufted ducks, pintails, white spoonbills, Asian open-billed storks, and Oriental ibises. The UNESCO website points out that five critically endangered, two endangered and six vulnerable species and 42 species of raptors were spotted in the park and that it is the breeding ground for 115 species of birds including 15 water bird species.

Apart from birds, one can also see common monitor lizards, Indian porcupine, the bi-coloured leaf-nose bat and snakes such as the krait, cobra and Russell’s viper. In the wetlands, there are a variety of worms, insects and molluscs that are consumed by fish, birds and some animals as well.

Fun facts

The name Keoladeo comes from an ancient Shiva temple within the sanctuary.

This is the only National Park in India completely enclosed by a two-metre high boundary wall to minimise encroachment and disturbances.

Renowned ornithologist Salim Ali was instrumental in getting the area the National Park status.

June 23 is International Women in Engineering Day, an occasion to draw inspiration from impactful women at the forefront. Here are three such stalwarts.

Cosmic explorer

Kalpana Chawla

The first woman of Indian origin to fly to space, Kalpana Chawla was born in Karnal, Haryana. Her name fittingly means ‘idea’ or ‘imagination’. She studied aeronautical engineering at Punjab Engineering College at a time when very few girls in the country were involved in the field. She then moved to the U.S. for higher studies. When she started work at NASA Ames Research Center, she worked in the area of powered-lift computational fluid dynamics. In 1997, she flew to space and spent 15 days orbiting the Earth. A second space mission aboard the space shuttle Columbia in 2003 ended in disaster. Kalpana lost her life along with six other crew members when the spacecraft disintegrated upon re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere.

From milestone to milestone

Christina Koch

NASA astronaut Christina Koch’s career tells a tale of several records. With a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering and physics and a Master of Science in electrical engineering, Koch worked on space science instrument development and remote scientific field engineering before becoming an astronaut. Her experience also includes staying and working in Antarctica, Greenland, and several other remote and challenging places. During her time in space, she participated in the first all-female spacewalk and set a record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman (328 days). Yet another feather in her cap? She is all set to become the first woman to circle the Moon as part of NASA’s Artemis II mission. One of Time’s 100 Most Influential People of 2020, Christina Koch is truly a trailblazer.

Pushing boundaries

Marissa Mayer

When Marissa Mayer joined Google in 1999, she was the company’s first female software engineer and its 20th employee overall. During her 13-year stint, she worked on several of Google’s offerings that are distinctive today, including Google Search, Gmail, Chrome, Google Maps, Google Earth, Street View and Google Doodle. She successfully established herself as a key figure in one of the most influential tech companies in the world. Following this, she became CEO and President of Yahoo! Inc, where she spent five years, and then co-founded a start-up technology company called Sunshine. When she was named among Fortune magazine’s annual list of America’s 50 Most Powerful Women in Business in 2008, she was 33 years old, making her the youngest woman ever listed.

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