Hastinapur Sanctuary is sprawled in 2073 sq km in Meerut, Ghaziabad, Jyotiba Phule Nagar, and Bijnore of Uttar Pradesh. The Sanctuary features marshy land that lies along River Ganga. This place houses a variety of flora and fauna.

Hastinapur Sanctuary constitutes 1/3 part of the total sanctuary area of the state. This place is also known as Hastinapur National Park. Tourists visiting this sanctuary are awed by the incredible beauty of nature.

Wildlife

Hastinapur Sanctuary is a haven for birds. It houses more than 350 species, including sarus crane, black and white necked stork, and painted stork. Visitors can also find night birds of prey like the great Indian horned owl, barbet, colorful woodpecker, jungle owlet, kingfisher, bee-eater, bulbul, and minivet.

Hastinapur Sanctuary has rich fauna. This is due to the diverse ecological niches present here. The place has a lot of birds, mammals, reptiles like snakes and lizards, butterflies, frogs and toads, and fish. There are also invertebrate group of creatures, such as centipede, scorpions, wasps, bees, dragon-flies, damsel-flies, termites, spiders, and more.

The Sanctuary is full of peacocks. There are also jackals, sloth bears, wild pigs, jungle cats, leopards, fishing cats, and civets in abundance.

Visitors have also seen Gangetic dolphins in some stretches along the Ganga, between Bijnor and Haridwar.

Best Time to Visit

Months from October to March are best to visit Hastinapur. The remaining months are dry and hot. Yet, tourists come to this place all year round due to the pilgrimage importance of Hastinapur, as it is mentioned in the epic, Mahabharata.

How to Reach

The nearest airport to Hastinapur is Delhi, which is at a distance of 110 km. The nearest railway station is Meerut, which is about 40 km from Hastinapur Sanctuary. The place is connected to other parts of UP through roadways on NH 119 Delhi-Meeru-Pauri.