Kaziranga National Park

Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox protected area Kaziranga National Park is a national park in the Golaghat, Sonitpur, Biswanath and Nagaon districts of the state of Assam, India. KNP has 5 ranges. The park, which hosts two-thirds of the world's Indian rhinoceroses, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> According to a March 2018 census conducted jointly by the Forest Department of the Government of Assam and some recognized wildlife NGOs, the rhino population in Kaziranga National Park is 2,613. It comprises 1,641 adult rhinos and 385 calves.<ref name="rhino population">Template:Cite web</ref>

Kaziranga National Park was declared a Tiger Reserve in 2006. The park is home to large breeding populations of elephants, wild water buffalo, and swamp deer.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Kaziranga is recognized as an Important Bird Area by BirdLife International for conservation of avifaunal species which refers as the birds or types of birds found in a specific region, period, or environment. When compared with other protected areas in India, Kaziranga has achieved notable success in wildlife conservation.Template:Citation needed Located on the edge of the Eastern Himalaya biodiversity hotspot, the park combines high species diversity and visibility.

Kaziranga is a vast expanse of tall elephant grass, marshland, and dense tropical moist broadleaf forests, criss-crossed by four major rivers, including the Brahmaputra, and the park includes numerous small bodies of water. Kaziranga has been the theme of several books, songs, and documentaries. The park celebrated its centennial in 2005 after its establishment in 1905 as a reserve forest.

Etymology

Although the etymology of the name Kaziranga is not certain, there exist a number of possible explanations derived from local legends and records. According to one legend, a girl named Rawnga, from a nearby village, and a youth named Kazi, from Karbi Anglong, fell in love. This match was not acceptable to their families, and the couple disappeared into the forest, never to be seen again, and the forest was named after them.Template:Citation needed<ref name="AMTRON">Template:Cite web</ref>

Testimony to the long history of the name can be found in some records, which state that once, while the Ahom king Pratap Singha was passing by the region during the seventeenth century, he was particularly impressed by the taste of fish, and on asking was told it came from Kaziranga.<ref name="un7">Template:Cite web</ref> Kaziranga also could mean the "Land of red goats (Deer)", as the word Kazi in the Karbi language means "goat", and Rangai means "red".<ref name="un7" />

Some historians believe, however, that the name Kaziranga was derived from the Karbi word Kajir-a-rong, which means "the village of Kajir" (kajiror gaon). Among the Karbis, Kajir is a common name for a girl child,Template:Citation needed and it was believed that a woman named Kajir once ruled over the area. Fragments of monoliths associated with Karbi rule found scattered in the area seem to bear testimony to this assertion.

History

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The history of Kaziranga as a protected area can be traced back to 1904, when Mary Curzon, Baroness Curzon of Kedleston, the wife of the Viceroy of India, Lord Curzon of Kedleston, visited the area.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> After failing to see a single-horned rhinoceros, for which the area was renowned, she persuaded her husband to take urgent measures to protect the dwindling species which he did by initiating planning for their protection.<ref name="bbc">Template:Cite news</ref> On 1 June 1905, the Kaziranga Proposed Reserve Forest was created with an area of Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Over the next three years, the park area was extended by Template:Convert, to the banks of the Brahmaputra River.<ref name="kazi100">Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Failed verification In 1908, Kaziranga was designated a "Reserve Forest".

In 1916, it was redesignated the "Kaziranga Game Sanctuary" and remained so till 1938, when hunting was prohibited and visitors were permitted to enter the park.Template:Citation needed In 1934 Kaziranga was changed to Kaziranha. A few people call it by its original name till today.

The Kaziranga Game Sanctuary was renamed the "Kaziranga Wildlife Sanctuary" in 1950 by P. D. Stracey, the forest conservationist, in order to rid the name of hunting connotations.<ref>Oberai, C. P., & Bonal, B. S. (2002). Kaziranga, the rhino land. Delhi: B.R. Pub. Corp. Retrieved 29 August 2020.</ref>

One horned Indian rhinos in Kaziranga National Park in Nagaon district of Assam. Rhinos have been widely slaughtered for their horn, a prized ingredient in traditional Asian medicines. Destruction of their habitat over the years has brought the rhinos to the brink of extinction. These animals are among the world's most endangered species.

In 1954, the government of Assam passed the Assam (Rhinoceros) Bill, which imposed heavy penalties for rhinoceros poaching.Template:Citation needed Fourteen years later, in 1968, the state government passed the Assam National Park Act of 1968, declaring Kaziranga a designated national park.Template:Citation needed The Template:Convert park was given official status by the central government on 11 February 1974. In 1985, Kaziranga was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO for its unique natural environment.

Kaziranga has been the target of several natural and man-made calamities in recent decades including major floods. Floods caused by the overflow of the river Brahmaputra,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> leading to significant losses of animal life.<ref name="unrevised">Kaziranga Factsheet (Revised) Template:Webarchive, UNESCO, Retrieved on 2007-02-27 </ref> In 2024, six dead rhinos along with hundreds of deer were tallied as drowned by the rising water.<ref>"Assam floods: India national park flooding kills more than 130 animals"</ref> Encroachment by people along the periphery has also led to a diminished forest cover and a loss of habitat.Template:Citation needed An ongoing separatist movement in Assam led by the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) has crippled the economy of the region,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> but Kaziranga has remained unaffected by the movement; indeed, instances of rebels from the United Liberation Front of Assam protecting the animals and, in extreme cases, killing poachers, have been reported since the 1980s.<ref name="bbc" />

Geography

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Map of Kaziranga National Park. River courses and lake areas vary annually. River courses are not drawn completely outside park boundaries

Kaziranga is located between latitudes 26°30' N and 26°45' N, and longitudes 93°08' E to 93°36' E within three districts in the Indian state of Assam—the Kaliabor subdivision of Nagaon district, Bokajan subdivision of Karbi Anglong and the Bokakhat subdivision of Golaghat district.<ref name="un" />

The park is approximately Template:Convert in length from east to west, and Template:Convert in breadth from north to south.<ref name=lahan>Template:Cite journal</ref> Kaziranga covers an area of Template:Convert, with approximately Template:Convert lost to erosion in recent years.<ref name=lahan /> A total addition of Template:Convert along the present boundary of the park has been made and designated with separate national park status to provide extended habitat for increasing the population of wildlife or, as a corridor for safe movement of animals to Karbi Anglong Hills.<ref name="unescoreport" /> Template:Rp Elevation ranges from Template:Convert to Template:Convert.Template:Citation needed The park area is circumscribed by the Brahmaputra River, which forms the northern and eastern boundaries, and the Mora Diphlu, which forms the southern boundary. Other notable rivers within the park are the Diphlu and Mora Dhansiri.<ref name="unescotech">Template:Rp Template:Cite web</ref> Template:Rp

Kaziranga has flat expanses of fertile, alluvial soil, formed by erosion and silt deposition by the River Brahmaputra.Template:Citation needed The landscape consists of exposed sandbars, riverine flood-formed lakes known as, beels, (which make up 5% of the surface area),Template:Citation needed and elevated regions known as, chapories, which provide retreats and shelter for animals during floods. Many artificial chapories have been built with the help of the Indian Army to ensure the safety of the animals.<ref>Template:Cite web. WildPhotoToursIndia(Through Archive.org). Retrieved on 2007-02-27</ref><ref name="unsummary">Template:Rp Template:Cite web</ref> Kaziranga is one of the largest tracts of protected land in the sub-Himalayan belt, and due to the presence of highly diverse and visible species, has been described as a "biodiversity hotspot".<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The park is located in the Indomalayan realm, and the dominant ecoregions of the region are Brahmaputra Valley semi-evergreen forests of the tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests biome, and the frequently-flooded Terai-Duar savanna and grasslands of the tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome. Kaziranga is also surrounded by lush green tea plantations, most of them contributing heavily to Assam's economy.

Climate

The park experiences three seasons: summer, monsoon, and winter. The winter season, between November and February, is mild and dry, with a mean high of Template:Convert and low of Template:Convert.Template:Citation needed During this season, beels and nullahs (water channels) dry up.<ref name="unescotech" />Template:Rp The summer season between March and May is hot, with temperatures reaching a high of Template:Convert.Template:Citation needed During this season, animals usually are found near water bodies.<ref name="unescotech" />Template:Rp The rainy monsoon season lasts from June to September, and is responsible for most of Kaziranga's annual rainfall of Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> During the peak months of July and August, three-fourths of the western region of the park is submerged, due to the rising water level of the Brahmaputra. Each time a flood comes, 70%-80% percent of the national park is inundated for 5–10 days at a time. The flooding causes most animals to migrate to elevated and forested regions outside the southern border of the park, such as the Mikir hills. 540 animals, including 13 rhinos and mostly hog deer perished in unprecedented floods of 2012.<ref name="un">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> However, occasional dry spells create problems as well, such as food shortages and occasional forest fires.<ref name="dryspell">Template:Cite news</ref>

Seasonal variations in the vegetation and habitat of the animal is notable in the park. During winter the shallow beels and nullahs (small water channel) dry up and the growth of short grasses cover up their beds. The grasses also grow around the perennial beels. With the end of the monsoon season, herbivorous animals, especially the rhinoceros, rush into these areas for grazing.<ref name="unescoreport2">Template:Cite web</ref>

In the other parts of the park the tall coarse grasses dry up by the month of December and January and are then control burnt by the park staff. After such burning some animals begin to concentrate in the burnt patches and relish the ash and the partially burnt stems of the reeds. With few winter showers fresh grass blades shoot up in the burnt patches attracting larger number of animals to these areas.<ref name="unescoreport2" />

With the onset of the summer season the grasses in the burnt patches grow up quickly and the tender shoots turn into coarse blades, which no longer attract the animals. The temperature also goes up and the animals prefer to remain near the water sources especially around the numerous perennial beels and water streams inside the park.<ref name="unescoreport2" />

During the monsoon, the shallow beels and the nullahs start to get filled up, firstly by the monsoon showers and later by the floodwaters. The animals gradually start moving towards higher grounds, which are situated around the tree forests. When the flood water covers most of the areas the animals migrate to the nearby Karbi Anglong Hills and other adjoining areas.<ref name="unescoreport2" />

Flora

Four main types of vegetation exist in this park.<ref>Talukdar, B. (1995). Status of Swamp Deer in Kaziranga National Park. Department of Zoology, Guwahati University, Assam.</ref> These are alluvial inundated grasslands, alluvial savanna woodlands, tropical moist mixed deciduous forests, and tropical semi-evergreen forests. Based on Landsat data for 1986, percent coverage by vegetation is: tall grasses 41%, short grasses 11%, open jungle 29%, swamps 4%, rivers and water bodies 8%, and sand 6%.<ref name="kushwaha">Kushwaha, S.& Unni, M. (1986). Applications of remote sensing techniques in forest-cover-monitoring and habitat evaluation—a case study at Kaziranga National Park, Assam, in, Kamat, D.& Panwar, H.(eds), Wildlife Habitat Evaluation Using Remote Sensing Techniques. Indian Institute of Remote Sensing / Wildlife Institute of India, Dehra Dun. pp. 238–247</ref>

There is a difference in altitude between the eastern and western areas of the park, with the western side being at a lower altitude. The western reaches of the park are dominated by grasslands. Tall elephant grass is found on higher ground, while short grasses cover the lower grounds surrounding the beels or flood-created ponds.Template:Citation needed Annual flooding, grazing by herbivores, and controlled burning maintain and fertilize the grasslands and reeds. Common tall grasses are sugarcanes, spear grass, elephant grass, and the common reed. Numerous forbs are present along with the grasses. Amidst the grasses, providing cover and shade are scattered trees—dominant species including kumbhi, Indian gooseberry, the cotton tree (in savanna woodlands), and elephant apple (in inundated grasslands).Template:Citation needed

Thick evergreen forests, near the Kanchanjhuri, Panbari, and Tamulipathar blocks, contain trees such as Aphanamixis polystachya, Talauma hodgsonii, Dillenia indica, Garcinia tinctoria, Ficus rumphii, Cinnamomum bejolghota, and species of Syzygium. Tropical semi-evergreen forests are present near Baguri, Bimali, and Haldibari. Common trees and shrubs are Albizia procera, Duabanga grandiflora, Lagerstroemia speciosa, Crateva unilocularis, Sterculia urens, Grewia serrulata, Mallotus philippensis, Bridelia retusa, Aphania rubra, Leea indica, and Leea umbraculifera.<ref>Jain, S.K. and Sastry, A.R.K. (1983). Botany of some tiger habitats in India. Botanical Survey of India, Howrah. p71.</ref>

There are many different aquatic floras in the lakes and ponds, and along the river shores. The invasive water hyacinth is very common, often choking the water bodies, but it is cleared during destructive floods.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Another invasive species, Mimosa invisa, which is toxic to herbivores, was cleared by Kaziranga staff with help from the Wildlife Trust of India in 2005.<ref>Silent Stranglers, Eradication of Mimosas in Kaziranga National Park, Assam Template:Webarchive; Vattakkavan et al.; Occasional Report No. 12, Wildlife Trust of India, pp. 12–13. Retrieved on 2007-02-26</ref>

Fauna

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Kaziranga contains significant breeding populations of 35 mammalian species,<ref name="reptilelist">Template:Cite web</ref> of which 15 are threatened as per the IUCN Red List.Template:Citation needed The park has the distinction of being home to the world's largest population of the Indian rhinoceros (2,401),<ref name="tiger">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> wild water buffalo (1,666)<ref name=buffalo>'Wild buffalo census in Kaziranga', The Rhino Foundation for Nature in NE India, Newsletter No. 3, June 2001</ref> and eastern swamp deer (468).<ref name="trib">Template:Cite news</ref> Significant populations of large herbivores include Indian elephants (1,940),<ref name="elesurvey">Template:Cite web</ref> sambar (58). Small herbivores include the Indian muntjac, Indian boar and Indian hog deer.<ref name="un" /><ref name="animalsurvey">Template:Cite web</ref> Kaziranga has the largest population of the Wild water buffalo anywhere accounting for about 57% of the world population.<ref>Choudhury, A.U. (2010) The vanishing herds: the wild water buffalo. Gibbon Books, Rhino Foundation, CEPF & COA, Taiwan, Guwahati, India</ref> The Indian rhinoceros, royal Bengal tiger, Asian elephant, wild water buffalo and swamp deer are collectively known as 'Big Five' of Kaziranga.

Kaziranga is one of the few wild breeding areas outside Africa for multiple species of large cats, such as Bengal tigers and Indian leopard.<ref name="reptilelist" /> Kaziranga was declared a Tiger Reserve in 2007 .<ref name="tiger" /> Other felids include the jungle cat, fishing cat and leopard cat.<ref name="reptilelist" /> It is also the only place in India and the world, where a Golden tiger was spotted in the wild.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Small mammals include the rare hispid hare, Indian gray mongoose, small Indian mongooses, large Indian civet, small Indian civets, Bengal fox, golden jackal, sloth bear, Chinese pangolin, Indian pangolins, hog badger, Chinese ferret-badger, and particoloured flying squirrel.<ref name="un" /><ref name="reptilelist" /> Nine of the 14 primate species found in India occur in the park.<ref name="bbc" /> Prominent among them are the Assamese macaque, capped and golden langur, as well as the only ape found in India, the hoolock gibbon.<ref name="un" /><ref name="reptilelist" /> The binturong and the Asian small-clawed otter were recorded in the park in the year 2024.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Kaziranga's rivers are also home to the endangered Ganges dolphin.Template:Citation needed

Kaziranga has been identified by Birdlife International as an Important Bird Area.<ref name="kaziavi">Template:Cite web</ref> It is home to a variety of migratory birds, water birds, predators, scavengers, and game birds. Birds such as the lesser white-fronted goose, ferruginous duck, Baer's pochard duck and lesser adjutant, greater adjutant, black-necked stork, and Asian openbill stork migrate from Central Asia to the park during winter.<ref name="forktail">Template:Rp Template:Cite journal</ref> Riverine birds include the Blyth's kingfisher, white-bellied heron, Dalmatian pelican, spot-billed pelican, Nordmann's greenshank, and black-bellied tern.<ref name="forktail" />Template:Rp Birds of prey include the rare eastern imperial, greater spotted, white-tailed, Pallas's fish eagle, grey-headed fish eagle, and the lesser kestrel.<ref>Choudhury, A.U. (2003) Birds of Kaziranga: a check list. Gibbon Books & Rhino Foundation, Guwahati, India</ref>

Kaziranga was once home to seven species of vultures, but the vulture population reached near extinction, supposedly by feeding on animal carcasses containing the drug Diclofenac.<ref name="vulture" /> Only the Indian vulture, slender-billed vulture, and white-rumped vulture have survived.<ref name="vulture">Template:Cite journal Template:Dead link Template:Cbignore</ref> Game birds include the swamp francolin, Bengal florican, and pale-capped pigeon.<ref name="forktail" />Template:Rp

Other families of birds inhabiting Kaziranga include the great pied hornbill and wreathed hornbill, Old World babblers such as Jerdon's and marsh babblers, weaver birds such as the common baya weaver, threatened Finn's weavers, and bristled grassbird. Other threatened species include the black-breasted parrotbill<ref name="forktail" />Template:Rp

Two of the largest snakes in the world, the reticulated python and Indian rock python, as well as the longest venomous snake in the world, the king cobra, inhabit the park. Other snakes found here include the Indian cobra, monocled cobra, Russell's viper, and the common krait.<ref name="reptilelist" /> Monitor lizard species found in the park include the Bengal monitor and the Asian water monitor.<ref name="reptilelist" /> Other reptiles include fifteen species of turtle, such as the endemic Assam roofed turtle and one species of tortoise, the brown tortoise.<ref name="reptilelist" /> 42 species of fish are found in the area, including the Tetraodon.<ref name=reptilelist />

Governance

The Wildlife wing of the forest department of the Government of Assam, headquartered at Bokakhat, is responsible for the administration and management of Kaziranga.<ref name="unescotech" />Template:Rp The administrative head of the park is the director, who is a Chief Conservator of Forests-level officer. A divisional Forest Officer is the administrative chief executive of the park. He is assisted by two officers with the rank of Assistant Conservator of Forests. The park area is divided into five ranges, overseen by Range Forest Officers.<ref name="unescotech" />Template:Rp The five ranges are the Burapahar (HQ: Ghorakati), Western (HQ: Baguri), Central (HQ: Kohora), Eastern (HQ: Agaratoli) and Northern (HQ: Biswanath). Each range is further sub-divided into beats, headed by a forester, and sub-beats, headed by a forest guard.<ref name="unescotech" />Template:Rp

The park receives financial aid from the State Government as well as the Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change of Government of India under various Plan and Non-Plan Budgets. Additional funding is received under the Project Elephant from the Central Government. Most of this funding is used in paying wages and salaries of the staff and in anti-poaching measures, only a little sum is left behind for the development of the park. In spite of the funding from the government the park faces shortage of funds.<ref name="unescoreport3">Template:Cite web</ref> In 1997–1998, a grant of US$ 100,000 was received under the Technical Co-operation for Security Reinforcement scheme from the World Heritage Fund.<ref name="unsummary" />Template:Rp Additional funding is also received from national and international Non-governmental organizations.

There are three dirt tracks inside the park corresponding to the three forest ranges of the park for patrolling and to view wildlife by the tourists. The Central or Kaziranga range with Kohora as the entry point covers the Daglang and Foliomari area. Some part of this range is the Core Zone of the Tiger Reserve or a Strict Nature Reserve, where casual visitors are not permitted.Template:Citation needed The Western range has Baguri as the entry point and covers the Monabeel, Bimoli, Kanchanjuri areas. This range is preferred for seeing big game like rhinos and water buffaloes.Template:Citation needed The Eastern range with Agortoli as the entry point covers Sohola and Rangamatia.Template:Citation needed This is Template:Convert from Kohora and is preferred for birding.Template:Citation needed

Local people get employment from the park in the form of labour and allied activities. Labour requirements for the park include labour for anti-poaching activities and construction of bridges, culverts, etc. Approximately 100 to 200 people are hired per range for removal of Mimosa, a weed which is harmful for the herbivores.<ref name="un72">Template:Cite web</ref> As of 2007 the park authorities have also hired security guards to protect the tourist jeeps inside the park. The park has developed a very good network of intelligence throughout the villages surrounding the park. There are key informants in every village, which reports about the movement of poachers and are monetarily compensated for information they provide to the park authorities.<ref name="un72" />

Conservation management

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Kaziranga National Park has been granted maximum protection under the Indian law for wildlife conservation. Various laws, which range in dates from the Assam Forest Regulation of 1891 and the Biodiversity Conservation Act of 2002 have been enacted for protection of wildlife in the park.<ref name="unsummary" />Template:Rp Poaching activities, particularly of the rhinoceroses for its horn, has been a major concern for the authorities. Between 1980 and 2005, 567 rhinoceroses were hunted by poachers.<ref name="unescotech" />Template:Rp Following a decreasing trend for the past few years, 18 Indian rhinoceroses were killed by poachers in 2007.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Reports have suggested that there are links between these poaching activities and funding of terrorist organizations.<ref>Template:Cite news Template:Dead link</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> But these could not be substantiated in later years. Preventive measures such as construction of anti-poaching camps and maintenance of existing ones, patrolling, intelligence gathering, and control over the use of firearms around the park have reduced the number of casualties.<ref name="kazihero">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=telegraph070424>Template:Cite news</ref> Since 2013, the park used cameras on drones which are monitored by security guards to protect the rhino from armed poachers.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Perennial flooding and heavy rains have resulted in the death of wild animals and damage to the conservation infrastructures.<ref name="unescoreport">Template:Rp Template:Cite report</ref> To escape the water-logged areas, many animals migrate to elevated regions outside the park boundaries where they are susceptible to hunting, hit by speeding vehicles, or subject to reprisals by villagers for damaging their crops.Template:Citation needed To mitigate the losses, the authorities have increased patrols, purchased additional speedboats for patrol, and created artificial highlands for shelter.Template:Citation needed Several corridors have been set up for the safe passage of animals across National Highway–37 which skirts around the southern boundary of the park.<ref name="highway">Bonal, BS & Chowdhury, S (2004), Evaluation of barrier effect of National Highway37 on the wildlife of Kaziranga National Park and suggested strategies and planning for providing passage: A feasibility report to the Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India.</ref> To prevent the spread of diseases and to maintain the genetic distinctness of the wild species, systematic steps such as immunization of livestock in surrounding villages and fencing of sensitive areas of the park, which are susceptible to encroachment by local cattle, are undertaken periodically.Template:Citation needed

Water pollution due to run-off from pesticides from tea gardens, and run-off from a petroleum refinery at Numaligarh, pose a hazard to the ecology of the region.<ref name="unescotech" />Template:Rp Invasive species such as Mimosa and wild rose have posed a threat to the native plants in the region. To control the growth and irradiation of invasive species, research on biological methods for controlling weeds, manual uprooting and weeding before seed settling are carried out at regular intervals.Template:Citation needed Grassland management techniques, such as controlled burning, are effected annually to avoid forest fires.<ref name="un" />

Ecotourism

Observing the wildlife, including birding, is the main visitor activity in and around the park. Guided tours by elephant or Jeep are available. Hiking is prohibited in the park to avoid potential human-animal conflicts. Observation towers are situated at Sohola, Mihimukh, Kathpara, Foliamari, and Harmoti for wildlife viewing. The snow-covered Lower Himalayan peaks frame the park's landscape of trees and grass interspersed with numerous ponds. An interpretation centre is at the Bagori range of Kaziranga to help visitors learn more about the park.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The park remains closed for visitors from May to October due to monsoon rains.

Four tourist lodges at Kohora and three tourist lodges outside the park are maintained by the Department of Environment and Forests, Government of Assam. Private resorts are available outside the park borders.<ref name="unescoreport" />Template:Rp Increase in tourist inflow has led to the economic empowerment of the people living at the fringes of the park, by means of tourism related activities, encouraging a recognition of the value of its protection.<ref name="un7" />Template:Rp A survey of tourists notes that 80 percent found rhino sightings most enjoyable and that foreign tourists were more likely to support park protection and employment opportunities financially, while local tourists favored support for veterinary services.<ref> Template:Cite web

</ref> Recently set up Kaziranga National Orchid and Biodiversity Park established at Durgapur village is a latest attraction to the tourists. It houses more than 500 species of orchids, 132 varieties of sour fruits and leafy vegetables, 12 species of cane, 46 species of bamboo and a large varieties of local fishes.<ref name="Kaziranga National Orchid Park">Template:Cite web</ref>

Tourism benefits the people living in the fringe of the park and helps in empowering the local people. As of 2007, about 35 hotels or lodges of various kinds located just outside the park, four of which run by the government.<ref name="un72" /> They employ about 300 people. Some families also offer home stay facilities just outside the park so that the tourists may get a taste of the local life and host can drive and guide visitors into the park.<ref name="un72" /> There are also 26 shops selling souvenirs and locally handmade woven cloth that are owned and/or managed by local community members.<ref name="un72" /> The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) jointly support rural tourism in village of Durgapur, which falls in the periphery of the Kohora range of Kaziranga along with other initiatives at 31 sites across India.<ref name="un72" />

Transport

Authorised guides of the forest department accompany all travelers inside the park. Mahout-guided elephant rides and Jeep or other 4WD vehicles rides are booked in advance. Starting from the Park Administrative Centre at Kohora, these rides can follow the three motorable trails under the jurisdiction of three ranges—Kohora, Bagori, and Agaratoli. These trails are open for light vehicles from November to April. Visitors willing to view wild life by motorcars are guided through these roads by the staff of this department. Visitors are allowed to take their own vehicles when accompanied by guides.

Buses owned by Assam State Transport Corporation and private agencies between Guwahati, Tezpur, and Upper Assam stop at the main gate of Kaziranga on NH 37 at Kohora.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The nearest town is Bokakhat, Golaghat situated at 23 km and 65 km away. Major cities near the park are Guwahati, Dimapur and Jorhat. Furkating Template:Convert, which is under the supervision of Northeast Frontier Railway, is the nearest railway station.Template:Citation needed Jorhat Airport at Rowriah (Template:Convert away), Tezpur Airport at Salonibari (Template:Convert away), Dimapur Airport Template:Convert and Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport in Guwahati (Template:Convert away) are the nearby airports. Transportation is also available from Guwahati to Kaziranga National Park and other places in Assam and Nagaland.

Controversy

In 2017, Kaziranga came under severe criticism after a BBC News documentary revealed a hardliner strategy to conservation, reporting the killing of 20 people a year in the name of rhino conservation.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite news</ref> As a consequence of this reporting, BBC News was banned from filming in protected areas in India for 5 years.<ref name=":1">Template:Cite news</ref> While several news reports claimed that BBC had apologized for the documentary, the BBC stood by its report, with its director general, Tony Hall, writing in a letter to Survival International that "the letter 'in no way constitutes an apology for our journalism.Template:'"<ref name=":3">Template:Cite web</ref> As a response to the report, researchers in India have provided more nuanced understanding of the matter, calling out BBC for the carelessness of its journalism, but also pointing to the problems of conservation in Kaziranga<ref name=":4">Template:Cite web</ref> and questioning whether shoot-at-sight has been a useful conservation strategy at all.<ref name=":5">Template:Cite web</ref>

Economic valuation

Kaziranga Tiger Reserve estimated its annual flow benefits to be 9.8 billion rupees (0.95 lakh / hectare). Important ecosystem services included habitat and refugia for wildlife (5.73 billion), gene-pool protection (3.49 billion), recreation value (21 million), biological control (150 million) and sequestration of carbon (17 million).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In popular culture

Kaziranga has been the theme of, or has been mentioned in, several books, songs, and documentaries. The park first gained international prominence after Robin Banerjee, a physician-turned-photographer and filmmaker, produced a documentary titled Kaziranga, which was aired on television in Berlin in 1961 and became a runaway success.<ref>Personalities of Golaghat district. Retrieved on 2007-03-22 Template:Webarchive</ref><ref>Robin Banerjee. Retrieved on 2007-03-22 Template:Webarchive</ref><ref>Lover of the wild, Uncle Robin no more. The Sentinel (Gauhati) 6 August 2003</ref> American science fiction and fantasy author, L. Sprague de Camp wrote about the park in his poem, "Kaziranga, Assam". It was first published in 1970 in Demons and Dinosaurs, a poetry collection, and was reprinted as Kaziranga in Years in the Making: the Time-Travel Stories of L. Sprague de Camp in 2005.Template:Citation needed

Kaziranga Trail (Children's Book Trust, 1979), a children's storybook by Arup Dutta about rhinoceros poaching in the national park, won the Shankar's Award.<ref>Khorana, Meena. (1991). The Indian Subcontinent in Literature for Children and Young Adults. Greenwood Press</ref> The Assamese singer Bhupen Hazarika refers to Kaziranga in one of his songs.<ref name="trib" /> The BBC conservationist and travel writer, Mark Shand, authored a book and the corresponding BBC documentary Queen of the Elephants, based on the life of the first female mahout in recent times—Parbati Barua of Kaziranga. The book went on to win the 1996 Thomas Cook Travel Book Award and the Prix Litteraire d'Amis, providing publicity simultaneously to the profession of mahouts as well as to Kaziranga.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

References

Notes

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Further information

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Jaws of Death—a 2005 documentary by Gautam Saikia about Kaziranga animals being hit by vehicular traffic while crossing National Highway 37, winner of the Vatavaran Award.
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External links

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Template:Kaziranga National Park Template:Protected areas of Assam Template:World Heritage Sites in India Template:National Parks of India Template:Tiger Reserves Of India Template:North East India

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Kaziranga National Park

Contents

Etymology

History