Bhubaneswar: Similipal Tiger Reserve (STR) in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj will remain out of bounds for tourists from July 1 because of monsoon. However, they can still access ecotourism sites at Jamuani, Gudagudia, Kumari, Barehipani and Ramatritha inside the national park.
In a notification, STR Field Director Prakash Chand Gogineni stated that the exact date for reopening of the national park would be announced later and published in newspapers.
The roads in the sanctuary usually get disrupted during the rains.
Spread over 2,750 square kilometres, the reserve is home to 42 species of mammals, 242 varieties of birds and 30 reptile categories and a variety of plant species and 96 types of orchids.
The authorities, meanwhile, revealed that 38,483 tourists – 26,083 from Odisha, 12,388 from other states and 12 foreign nationals – visited Similipal in 2024-2025. “While Rs 1.22 crore was earned from jungle safaris, Rs 2.75 crore was collected from nature camps inside the national park and Rs 29 lakh from entry permits,” Gogineni was quoted as saying.
It is worth mentioning here that the state government had declared STR as a National Park in April this year.
