Tourists arrive at Kaziranga as KNP reopens for visitors today

FROM A CORRESPONDENT

BOKAKHAT, Oct 31: Kaziranga tiol Park (KNP) will reopen for visitors on Sunday. State Forest Minister Etuwa Munda and Arun Phukan, MLA of Bokakhat and Parliamentary Secretary will formally open it at Kohora Range at 7 am, said SS Sharma, the DFO Eastern Range.

“As some of the roads inside the park are still under water, only 30 perc ent roads will be opened for visitors at present. Fifteen elephants at Kohora, 20 at Bagory and three elephants in Burhapahar range have been kept ready for visitors,” said the DFO.

The number of jeep safaris has not yet been decided as the KNP authority has received 300 applications for jeep safar1 and after verification of necessary documents, permission for jeep safari will be issued shortly. The entrance and exit of visitors will be recorded at the main gate of the ranges so that jeep safari drivers cannot deceive visitors by showing partial sights inside the park. This year visitors will be supplied with copy of driver’s identity card and jeep numbers. Wine is strictly prohibited for tourists and there will be alcohol breath alyzer to examine the visitors. Cameras will be placed on the route of visitors, said the DFO. Meanwhile, tiol and intertiol tourists have arrived at Kaziranga to visit the park. According to official sources, last year 1,31,354 tourists, of which 7,994 were foreign tiols, had visited the park and Rs 2,83,92,000 was collected as revenue , said the KNP Director. He further said that in comparison to other tiol parks of India, KNP had been imposing very less amount of entry fee and a proposal to increase the fee had been submitted to the State Government.