GUWAHATI: The Assam Forest Department, through a notification on Wednesday, declared the closure of elephant safari at the Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve (KNPTR) with effect from May 1, 2023, for the tourist season, 2022-23.
On the other hand, jeep safari in the famed park will remain closed with effect from May 16, 2023, for the tourist season, 2022-23.
This was mentioned in a notification issued by the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of the Eastern Assam Wildlife Division, Kaziranga National Park.
An order issued by the Divisional Forest Officer of the Eastern Assam Wildlife Division read, “It is notified for general information and best interest of all concerned that Elephant Safari and Jeep Safari for visitor in Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve will remain closed for tourist season, 2022-23 as detailed below:
1. Elephant Safari will remain closed from 1st May 2023
2. Jeep Safari will remain closed from 16th May, 2023”
The UNESCO world heritage site is usually closed down for tourists before the onset of the monsoon season.
The park remains closed throughout the rainy season and reopens once the rain God shows mercy and the water subsides from the interior and remote parts of the park.
The park authorities also have to prepare for the next tourist season by repairing damaged roads and wooden bridges.
Torrential rains in eastern Assam districts and the neighbouring Arunachal Pradesh cause devastation in the park as almost 90 per cent of its area gets submerged by the surging floodwaters of the Brahmaputra River that flows parallel to the park.
The forest guards have to face a harrowing time during the catastrophe as all the anti-poaching camps get inundated.
Moreover, the guards need to be extra vigilant round the clock during the floods as poachers take advantage of the situation or the animals get crushed under speeding vehicles while trying to cross National Highway 37 to take refuge in the nearby Karbi Anglong hills.
Notably, over 440 animals, including the highly endangered one-horned rhino, were killed in flood-related incidents in one of the worst-ever 2012 floods that submerged 90 per cent of the park’s area, forcing the poor animals to go to the nearby Karbi Anglong Hills after crossing the Highway.
The majority of the animals killed were 379 hog deer.
The KNPTR reopens on in the first week of October for the next season after remaining closed to tourists for about five months.