Leopard in Jaipur?

Jaipur is famous for:
Hawa Mahal
Amer Fort
Galta Ji
Ram Bagh Palace
And many other places.

Leopard in Jaipur? Yes, Jaipur also has a Leopard Safari in the heart of the city.

It is called Jhalana Leopard Safari Park. 
Where is it located?
Just 5.4 kms N-E of Jaipur airport. Mere 15 minutes drive. See the maps below.

Fact Sheet:
Set up by Rajasthan Forest Department in 2016 and opened to public in 2018


Erstwhile game reserve of the Royal Family
Spread over 23 sq kms
Has 38 Leopards. Thus it has the highest density of leopards per sq km in the world.

Two Safari sessions every day in the morning and evening.
In each session only 10 vehicles with 6 persons each permitted.
On-line booking through Rajasthan Forest Department website. You have to register before making a safari booking.

Private vehicles not permitted.
The Park has two zones. As of now, the vehicles can cross over from one zone to the other. But in future when the number of visitors goes up, the safari vehicles may be restricted to one zone only.

Cost of a Safari
Safari ride for Indian nationals costs Rs 390/- per head including taxes. Govt ID is mandatory for buying a ticket.

Ghumakkad took the afternoon Safari on 15th Feb.
Pictures.

A bit of history of the Park as displayed in the Interpretation Centre.

How are Leopards Identified?
Each leopard has unique set of spots and rosettes as explained below.

The Safari Begins

Those who have not been on a jungle safari, see the short clip below to get a feel of the jungle and how the safari vehicles navigate.

When multiple vehicles converge on a spot in the jungle- a short 30-second clip will interest you.

The blue sky in winter months is not to be missed!

As with many National Parks in India, there are monuments, temples, villages and other human settlements located inside the park. Jhalana reserve has a Kali Mandir inside the park. It has been fenced to provide security from the animals. The visitors have access during limited hours. See the picture below.

The safari continues past the temple.

The Park has an old hunting tower called 'Shikar Haudi'. Additional fee is charged to visit it.

Although we paid the fee but we could not visit it due to failing light. 
We waited at a water point hoping that the leopard will come to have water. See the video clip below.

We spotted more foreign tourists that afternoon. One couple had taken nine safaris earlier! Talk of patience!

All we could spot were Blue Bulls-Neel Gai नील गाय both male and female and variety of birds. See the pictures.

We then spotted a half-eaten kill of a blue bull. It indicated that the leopard was not far away. However, further wait did not bear fruit.

After a long wait lasting almost two hours, we were a bit disappointed. To add to our woes, three passengers in our vehicle became very impatient. They wanted to abort their safari and requested to be dropped back at the main entrance. We thus lost 30 minutes of safari time (total 3 hours) to drop the impatient visitors. Ganesh our driver, drove the electric vehicle at break neck speed to save time.

We rejoined rest of the vehicles waiting for the leopard. As the light was fading, we started the return leg of our safari rather reluctantly. We were still hopeful of a sighting. Not for me but for my brother Raj and his wife Sarita- both first time safari tourists. As they say first time lucky! While these thoughts were crossing my mind, our vehicle was moving slowly on the dirt track.

Another few minutes up an incline and a bend and we saw a dark shape moving ahead! We slowed down and cut all the noise whatsoever. It was a leopard ahead. Some 50 feet ahead. Walking on the sand track.
Excitement built up. Camera whirred. For my 300 mm lens on 1/800 speed setting for a moving vehicle, the light was really low. But the shutter won't stop. See the 5 second video clip first. The voice over is in a whisper.

The above video was then followed by a series of pictures. We kept following the leopard till he decided to ease himself in a bushy patch. We respected his privacy. See the series of pictures below.

We shot a 30-second video as we followed the leopard. Our driver alerted the other vehicles in the vicinity. One of these vehicles approached our vehicles and applied brakes. That disturbed the leopard and he disappeared into the bushes. Talk of disciplined wildlife tourists!

After another wait, we sighted the leopard again. This time we went solo to make sure the leopard is not disturbed. Here is a minute and a half long video clip of the leopard leading us. Once again, the voice is in a whisper to avoid disturbing the leopard.

The sun had already set. All vehicles have to clear the park before 6.30 pm in winter. We had our fill. Except that we had to forego the visit to Shikar Haudi. May be the next time.
Raj and Sarita sure proved first time lucky!

The evening clouds in otherwise clear sky cast a magical spell to the forest. We hope that the 'man' does not destroy the forest.

Mahatma Gandhi's words on the importance of forests echoed my mind. Here is a PQ- picturesque quote superimposed on the Jhalana forest.

Jaipur has seen many changes. Jhalana Leopard Reserve is one of such changes. You may view our earlier stories on Jaipur by clicking the links below:
'The Changing Face of Jaipur'
'The Pink City Beyond Pink'
'Rural Jugaad'

Thanks for browsing. Your feedback is welcome as always.

     - Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Neeta Bhargava/ 19th Feb 2020

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