Bhitarkanika To Remain Closed From May 1 For Croc Breeding

Kendrapara: The Bhitarkanika National Park in Odisha’s Kendrapara district will remain closed for tourists for three months from May 1 in view of the breeding season of the saltwater crocodiles.

Informing the media on Sunday, Divisional Forest Officer of the Rajnagar Wildlife Division, Bimal Prasanna Acharya said the ban on the entry of tourists will come into force from May 1 and continue till July 31.

He said the Forest department had taken the decision for the safety of the tourists and visitors as the saltwater crocodiles tend to get very aggressive during the breeding season and attack people without provocation.

The DFO said as per the annual census conducted in January 2016, the population of the saltwater crocodile in Bhitarkanika National Park had gone up to 1671.

He further said the Forest and Environment Ministry, in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), had started a crocodile breeding and rearing project in Dangamala within Bhitarkanika park in 1975.

Due to the success of the project, the saltwater crocodile population had substantially gone up in the creeks, river and other water bodies of the park and its nearby areas, he added.