Rajasthan.

Rajasthan is the next nearest destination to my home base in Haryana, and has plenty to offer too! India’s largest inland salt lake, Sambhar Lake, is a vast barren flat stretch of land very similar to Kutch areas and about 80km from Jaipur. Great for raptors like Peregrine Falcon, Eurasian Hobby, Merlin, Short-eared Owl, Harriers as well as for Flamingos, Pied Avocets etc.

Other places include Jhalana (within Jaipur city) with Shikras, Sirkeer Malkoha, European Rollers, Peacocks; and Sonkhaliya (near Ajmer and famous for Lesser Florican); Mount Abu for the Green Munia and Tal Chaapar for raptors, blackbucks and reptiles. Jorbeed and Jaisalmer are other two great birding places that I have covered separately.

The original paradise of bird watching has been a place called Bharatpur, a short drive from Agra. It surely has it earlier charm with habitat loss, construction activity etc. Some migrant birds like Siberian Crane have completely stopped coming. Nevertheless, the place still is a must do for all birders with its long straight 7-8 km road with wooded forests, waterbodies, and a foggy, misty environment. Birds like Glossy Ibis, Common Sniper, Oriental Darter, Common Kingfisher etc. It is a great place for some other animals too like bats, turtles, jackals etc. An hour drive from Bharatpur is a place called Dholpur on the border of Rajasthan and MP. I hired a boat here to cruise on the Chambal river with the sole purpose of seeing the Indian Skimmer and the occasional crocodiles idling on the banks of the river together with birds like Lesser Whistling Duck, Greater Thick Knee or the Wooly-necked Stork.