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Assam's Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve, famous for its one-horned rhinoceroses and tigers, reopened for tourists on Wednesday, after being shut for over seven months - the longest in its 112-year history.
Following the Covid-19 outbreak, all five national parks and 18 wildlife sanctuaries in Assam, including Kaziranga which usually remains shut for five months annually due to floods, were closed in March.
The 430 sq km haven for wild animals is one of the major tourist destinations in India. Every year, it attracts thousands of tourists from India and abroad.
Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal formally reopened Kaziranga and hoped that this will revive the state's tourism sector which has been severely hit by the pandemic.
He said that unemployed youths in and around Kaziranga would find meaningful employment again through jeep safari and other tourism-related activities.
