About Bharatpur

Bharatpur District is a district of Rajasthan state in western India. The town of Bharatpur is the district headquarters. The district has an area of 5,066 km². It is bounded by Rewari and Gurgaon districts of Haryana on the north, Mathura and Agra districts of Uttar Pradesh on the east, and the Rajasthan districts of Dholpur on the south, Karauli on the southwest, and Dausa and Alwar on the west.

Three rivers, the Ban Ganga, Rooparel, and Gambhir, cross the district. The Ban Ganga originates in Jaipur District, passes through Dausa and Bharatpur districts to meet the Yamuna River in Uttar Pradesh. The Gambhir River starts from Pachana Dam of Karauli District, and meets the Ban Ganga in Bayana tehsil. The Rooparel River starts from hills of Alwar District and enters the district in Kaman tehsil.

Bharatpur District is famous for Keoladeo National Park, a major wintering area for migratory birds. Established as a duck-hunting reserve by the Maharajas of Bharatpur, it was known as the best duck shooting resort in the British Empire. The site was declared a bird sanctuary in 1956 and later upgraded to National Park. UNESCO has listed it as a world heritage site. Keoladeo National Park attracts 364 species of birds, including many from India, but also from Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Siberia, China and Tibet, including the rare Siberian Crane. As the monsoons arrive and the wetlands and marshes start to fill with water, birds start pouring into the park.