From the east to west length of this park is about 40 km (25 mi) and the breadth from the north to south direction is about 13 km (8 mi). The approx area of Kaziranga is about 378 km2 (146 sq mi) and out of this the area about 51.14 km2 (20 sq mi) has been lost due to the erosion in last few years. Due to the decrease in this areas another area of about 429 km2 (166 sq mi) has been developed along with the total present area of this park in order to meet out the requirement of the population of the wildlife is increasing day by day and also to function as the passageway for the movement of wildlife animals to Karbi Anglong Hills. The elevation of this park is about 40 m (131 ft) to 80 m (262 ft). The total area of the park is confined by the river Brahmaputra that is forming the northern and eastern boundaries of this park, and the southern boundary of this park is covered by the Mora Diphlu. There are the other two rivers that are passing across this park that are the Diphlu and Mora Dhansiri.

General Information

History

The history of this Kaziranga park as protected area is as old as back to 1904 as it was visited by Mary Victoria Leiter Curzon who was the wife of Lord Curzon, the Viceroy of India. After visiting this area she didn’t found a single rhinoceros for the purpose of which this park was developed by the Govt. She convinced her husband for taking the steps and the measures for the protection of this deteriorating species. After that Lord Curzon started planning for the protection of this species and on 1st June 1905, the Kaziranga Reserve Forest was developed having an area of about 232 km2 (90 sq mi).

The area of this park was further enhanced by about 152 km2 (59 sq mi) in the next 3 years touching the river bank of Brahmaputra River and in 1908 this was purposed as the Reserve forest. It was than converted to a game sanctuary named as the Kaziranga Game Sanctuary in 1916 that remained till 1938. The hunting was totally banned in this area and only the visitors are allowed to visit this park.

In 1950 this Kaziranga Game Sanctuary was than given the name as the Kaziranga Wildlife Sanctuary by P. D. Stracey who was the forest conservationist so that the fame of this park as the hunting nuance can be removed. The government of Assam in 1954 passed the Assam (Rhinoceros) Bill imposing heavy penalties on the people poaching the rhinoceros. In 1968 after the fourteen years the Government of Assam again made and passed an act 'The Assam National Park Act of 1968' that declared this park as the Kaziranga national park and on 11th Feb 1974 the Central Government of India gave the official status to the area about 430 Km2 of this Park. The UNESCO in 1985 declared the Kaziranga Park as the World Heritage Site due to the exclusive natural environment of Kaziranga. In recent decades this park has witnessed many human-made and natural calamities as the floods leads to the loss of various animal lives due to the water overflowing of Brahmaputra River. The certain part of the forest area near its periphery has also been diminished due to the encroachment done by the local people that also lead to the loss of habitat for animals. The economy of this area has also got affected due to the separatist movement by the United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA) in Assam, However this park remained unaffected by this movement. The certain occurrences of revolt by the United Liberation Front of Assam for the protection of the wild animals were reported only since 1980’s including the killing of poachers.

In 2005 the anniversary of this park was celebrated with much ordeal in which during the celebrations of this park in early 2007 the descendants of Baroness and Lord Curzon were invited. Some elephants as well as two rhinoceros were transferred to the Manas National Park which is the first example of the  relocation of elephants in the national parks of India.

Best Time To Visit

The best time to visit this Kaziranga National Park is in the months between November to April. Generally the park get opened from the 1st of November to 30th April. However this time may be decreased by the management in case there is the heavy rainfall for the purpose of security reasons.

Distance From - National Park

Bokakhat: 23 kilometres (14 mi) away

Guwahati: 217 kilometres (135 mi)

Jorhat: 97 kilometres (60 mi)

Furkating: 75 kilometres (47 mi)

Jorhat Airport at Rowriah: 97 kilometres (60 mi)

Tezpur Airport at Salonibari: approx 100 kilometres (62 mi)

Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport in Guwahati: approximately 217 kilometres (135 mi)

How To Get There

The main activities that are to be done by the visitors in the park is observing the wildlife as well as watching the birds. Visitors can visit park by the guided tours of elephant as well as the jeeps. Mountaineering is being prohibited by the government in order to avoid the probable conflicts of human and animals. There is the provision of the observation towers for the purpose of viewing the park at Sohola, Mihimukh, Kathpara, Foliamari, and Harmoti. There arebeautiful landscapes available in this park that are present in the Lower Himalayan peaks and many ponds that are being interspersed by the grass. For the purpose of learning about the park there is the provision of an explanation centre for the visitors that is situated at the Bagori range of Kaziranga. Due to the monsoon rains this park remains closed from the mid-April to mid-October. For the purpose of lodging of the visitors the Government of Assam has developed four tourist lodges at Kohora and three inside the park that are being maintained by the Department of Environment and Forests of the state of Assam. Certain private resorts are also situated outside this park on its borders. The continuous and growth of the visitors in this park leads to the economic growth of the people who are living near and around this park due to the various activities related to tourism. According to the survey it has been noted that about 80 percent of the visitors enjoyed the rhino sightings the most. Certain foreign tourists supported the protection of the park and also the employment opportunities financially. However certain local visitors supported for the veterinary services in this park.

Things To Do In – Kaziranga National Park

All the visitors are being entertained by the guides authorized of the department of forest of Assam within the territory of the park. The elephants riding of Mahout-guided elephant as well as the 4 wheel drive jeeps are to be booked by the visitors in advance. This ride starts from the park Administrative Centre at Kohora that covers the three motorable trails that comes under the influence of three ranges namely Kohora, Bagori, and Agaratoli. Only the light vehicles are allowed in these trails from November to mid of May. The visitors having their own vehicle can also visit the park by accompanying the guides.

Accommodation

IORA - The Retreat, Kaziranga

Janambhumi Hotels & Resorts Pvt. Ltd.
151, Janambhumi Building, R. G. Baruah Road
Guwahati- 781005, Assam, India

Telephone : +91-3776-262411 / 262412

Bon Habi Resort

1no. Kohora Gaon, Bogorijuri
Kaziranga National Park ,
Dist: Golaghat,
Assam (India)
Pin:785109,

Ph : 91-3776-262675\262575 (O), 91-9435504268(M),
E mail : bonhabi_resort@yahoo.com

Diphlu River Lodge

1A Mandovi Apartments, G.N.B. Road, Ambari, Guwahati 781001, Assam, India

Telephone : +91-361-2602223 / 2602186 / 2540995
Fax : +91-361-2662140
E-mail : assambengal@rediffmail.com
Website : http://www.diphluriverlodge.com

Iora

Bogorijuri, P.O. Kohora
Kaziranga National Park,
Dist. Golaghat, Assam-785 109, INDIA.

Phone : +91-3776-262410 / 262411 / 262412 / 262437
Fax : + 91-3776-262418
E-mail : iora@kazirangasafari.com, gm@kazirangasafari.com

Weather

There are three major seasons that are being experienced by this park: summer, monsoon, and winter. Winter season ranges between the months from November to February and placid and dry experiencing the highest temperature up to 25 °C (77 °F) and lowest down to 5 °C (41 °F). All the beels as well as the nallas(water channels) got dried up in this season. The summer season ranges between the month of March to May and is hot experiencing the highest temperature up to 37 °C (99 °F). During summers the animals are generally found near the water bodies of this park. The rainy monsoon season ranges from the months of June to September that experience about rainfall of 2,220 mm (87 in). During the months of July and August the three-fourth area of the western region of this park got submerged in water due to the over flow of the river Brahmaputra. Due to the floods most of the animals get migrated to the higher regions of the forest as well as the outer southern part of this park like Mikir hills. However during the certain dry periods the wild animals experiences the shortage of food in this park.

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