(TAN): After eight months of remaining closed because of the pandemic, Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve in Northeast India’s Assam state has reopened for tourists after the longest closure in its 112-year-history, said media reports.
The UNESCO World Heritage Site, famous for its one-horned rhinoceros, will be opened to the public with strict Covid-19 precautionary measures in place. Wearing masks, using hand sanitizers, and maintaining social distancing will be compulsory for all visitors. A limited number of jeep safaris will be allowed at a time.
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Only two ranges, Kohora Range and Bagori Range, have been opened for tourists. Limited number of jeep safaris will be permitted here. The remaining ranges are still shut due to poor road conditions.
“We are opening the park after eight months due to Covid-19 outbreak. Two ranges will be operational for the tourists,” Ramesh Kumar, Divisional forest officer of the national park said.
The elephant safari inside the park will start from November 1, said Gogoi. The forest authority is reportedly planning to add five more new tourist destinations in the Kaziranga National Park and all these will resume from November 1.
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“We are not expecting many tourists in the initial days, but slowly it will pick up. Till now, we are yet to get elephant safari bookings for Bagori Range, but I hope, with time, the slots will fill up,” Gogoi added.
Kaziranga is home to at least 2,400 one-horned rhinos, the largest population in the world, and 121 tigers.
In July, heavy floods had submerged almost the entire park in which over 100 wildlife animals, including rhinos, were killed. The 2019 floods had also claimed nearly 200 animals in the park, including 18 rhinos.
