Sariska

Sariska Tiger Reserve lies in the state of Rajasthan, in the Aravalli hills, and protects some 881 km² of dry deciduous forest, thorn scrub, rock outcrops and grassland. It was given national park status in 1982, after having been a hunting reserve of the maharajas of Alwar and a sanctuary since the mid-twentieth century.

Its recent history has given it an international significance out of proportion to its size. In 2004 it was confirmed that not a single tiger was left in Sariska: poaching had wiped out the entire population without the administration detecting it in time. The episode caused an institutional crisis in Indian conservation, the creation of the National Tiger Conservation Authority and a complete review of the country's census methods.

In 2008 tigers from Ranthambhore National Park were moved to Sariska, in the first reintroduction of tigers by translocation carried out anywhere in the world. The operation has had mixed results, with breeding problems, cases of poisoning and the underlying difficulty that remains unresolved: the presence of villages and livestock inside the reserve and the human pressure on the habitat. Sariska is also home to leopard, striped hyena, nilgai, sambar and a notable birdlife, and inside it stand the Neelkanth temple and the Kankwari fort, where Aurangzeb held his brother Dara Shikoh prisoner.