The National Chambal Sanctuary is a unique tri-state riverine protected area in northern India, also known as the National Chambal Gharial Wildlife Sanctuary. It is an institution established for the conservation of a major North Indian river ecosystem and its critically endangered fauna. The sanctuary was first declared in Madhya Pradesh in 1978, with administrative approval from the Government of India conveyed on September 30, 1978. Its creation was a direct response to the severe decline of crocodilian populations, primarily the Critically Endangered gharial (Gavialis gangeticus), due to poaching, sand mining, and river modification.
The sanctuary's status is declared under Section 18(1) of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, which provides the legal framework for its protection. It works as a long, narrow eco-reserve covering a 600 km stretch of the Chambal River, jointly administered by the Forest Departments of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh. The sanctuary's core mechanism is the protection of the river's pristine habitat, which is vital for the world's largest population of gharials and the Endangered Ganges river dolphin (Platanista gangetica). The sanctuary is closely connected to Project Crocodile, launched in 1975 by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), which initiated conservation efforts like the Gharial Rehabilitation Centre at Deori.
In recent times, the sanctuary has faced significant challenges from illegal sand mining, which degrades the sandy banks essential for gharial nesting. This threat led to the Supreme Court of India taking suo motu cognizance of the issue in March 2026. Furthermore, the Rajasthan government's attempt to denotify 732 hectares of the sanctuary land in December 2025 for boundary rationalization was stayed by the Supreme Court in April 2026, which highlighted the ongoing legal battle to maintain the sanctuary's boundaries and protection levels. The sanctuary remains a proposed Ramsar site and an Important Bird Area (IBA), underscoring its ecological significance beyond its flagship species.