Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur- Birds in Paradise (A Unesco World Heritage Site)

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Bharatpur's Keoladeo National Park, a World Heritage Site, is a birds' paradise, with all kinds of birds, resident and migratory, in different colours and sizes. And though Keoladeo is basically a birds' park, every single plant and animal found here, small or big, adds to its beauty. Here, you will see fish, pythons, butterflies and turtles along with cranes, jacanas and egrets. The author, a veteran wildlife manager, takes the reader through an amazing tour of this sanctuary, through its days of glory, debacle and revival.
Birds in Paradise will inspire you to visit this park or, perhaps, plan yet another visit. Or else, you can simply lose yourself in the pages of this delightful book and let your imagination take flight.

Sunayan Sharma, formerly a member of the Indian Forest Service, has served as Wildlife Warden, Jodhpur; Field Director, Sariska Tiger Reserve and Director, Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur. His earlier book, Sariska: The Tiger Reserve Roars Again and its Hindi version have received high appreciation.
As President of the Sariska Tiger Foundation, a leading NGO, he is involved with wildlife and nature conservation, which he pursues with deep passion.
Navin Sharma, a prize-winning nature photojournalist, is a reputed name in this field. His photographs are published in leading newspapers and magazines and are exhibited at various prestigious national-level competitions.

Indian forest officers get a hands-on experience of managing a park or a forest reserve. The trials and tribulations, departmental intrigues, covert and overt political interference, pressure of non-government organisations, aspirations of the local communities and personal commitments-all come into play while on duty. Yet, few know about the immense pressure a senior forest officer has to work under, particularly when political and administrative support is lacking.
Despite having a ringside view of a protected area, not many officers sit down and write their memoirs. Sunayan Sharma is an exception. He has done a tremendous job by sharing his experience of running the world famous Keoladeo National Park during the three years of his tenure as Research Officer and then two years as Director. This was a tumultuous time when the famous jbeels (lakes) of the park had little or no water. In the chapter titled, 'Creation of New Water Resources', he has given details of his struggle to bring water to the park. It reveals the kind of behind-the scene activities that a forest officer has to engage in to get things done due to intractable bureaucratic tangles.
Over 200 research papers and two major books have been written on Keoladeo but Sharma's work is commendable as he has presented an excellent historical description of the park and the equally famous town, Bharatpur. Most of the research papers deal with the birds of the park, but Sharma has dug out legends, folklores and history, which no one has done. This book, right from the Overview itself, is an interesting read. The comprehensive details the author has given about the complex ecology of the wetland is a reflection of his deep knowledge of the ecosystem of the park. Wild creatures such as fish, turtles, pythons, dragonflies/damselflies and butterflies play an important role in the ecology of the Keoladeo National Park but these have found, for the first time, due place in a book on Keoladeo. This clearly shows that the author is committed to present the park in totality to the readers. Mesmerising scenes and animal behavioural acts, displayed in the form of beautiful pictures taken by Sharma and a few other wildlife enthusiasts, add huge value to the book.
Each chapter of this book is informative and gives a new perspective to the problems of the park. Sharma's ground action to remove the pernicious weed, Prosopis juliflora, highlights that, if there is determination, anything can be done. It is also an example for future park directors to keep the area cleared of Prosopis and Eichornia. Resources are not a problem if the willingness to act is there. Sharma shows this very clearly in his book.
In his five-year tenure, Sunayan Sharma was able to understand the fundamental problems of the park. I hope Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur: Birds in Paradise will set a trend and more senior forest officers will come forward and write about their experiences. We need better documentation of India's protected areas and wild species. This book is a good example.

My fascination for nature turned me into a forester even though basically I am an engineer. The management of the Aravalli forests was my first assignment, which I thoroughly enjoyed, but a serious dearth of wildlife in these luxuriant forests disappointed me. I questioned: 'Can't we manage these forests in a way that protects wildlife as well? Perhaps this brought me to the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, in 1985, where I was trained in wildlife management for nine months. My first visit to the Keoladeo National Park was from this Institute, after a few months of joining the course. What I saw before me was simply amazing lakes full of multi coloured beautiful ducks, geese and fish-eaters probing the shallow waters. The sudden take-off by hundreds of birds from the water surface on the approach of an eagle or a harrier, and then their landing back after taking a few rounds in the sky, was a breathtaking drama. It was mesmerising.
After the completion of the course, I got posted to Jodhpur where my chief responsibility was to ensure protection to the precious desert wildlife. Though I enjoyed my work here, the grandeur of Keoladeo was luring me all the time. The exciting memories of my last visit kept haunting me till, in 1988, I was posted to Keoladeo as a Research Officer. With my residence and office inside the park, I was in the lap of this heavenly abode all the time. The job demanded that I wander in the park day and night and that totally matched my desire. Hence, during these three years I combed not only every single inch of the park but also availed the opportunity of learning about the various elements credited for the creation of this haven. As a Research Officer, not wearing the cap of the top boss, I had the best opportunity to mingle with all kinds of people and minutely identify the ever-growing potent threats to this fragile ecosystem. The existence of the park depended upon the supply of water from the Ajan Dam and the farmers located all around the dam wanted this water for their crops. The politicians were standing in support of these voters. Many other problems needed to be addressed. Perhaps, as Director, with several other administrative duties, I would not have learnt about the root causes of these problems, but as a Research Officer I could do so quite easily.