GUWAHATI: Assam forest department has built 21 new highlands within the sprawling Kaziranga National Park (KNP), a UNESCO World Heritage Site, to provide shelter to animals facing flood fury during the rainy season every year.
Park sources said that 12 more highlands would be constructed in the park by the onset of the monsoon. The inside flood-prone wildlife sanctuary to facilitate shelter for flood-hit animals.
Every year flood water of the mighty Brahmaputra River that flows by the Park creates a havoc in the park where a large number of animals including rhinos perish because of the flood fury. Out of the existing 111 man-made highlands which were made years back in the Park, only a few are in good condition.
Taking stock of construction of highlands within the national park which is visited by a large number of foreign and domestic tourists every year, the Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has directed the forest department to carry out the highland construction work on a war footing to complete the same before monsoon.
Sonowal visited the highland construction sites at Mihimukh under Kohora Range of the National Park emphasised on ensuring safe shelter for animals during the flood and issued several directions to the forest department in this regard.
Sonowal during his visit asked the forest officials to plant adequate saplings on the highlands once the construction work was over. He particularly stressed on planting trees which could be used as fodder by the herbivorous animals during flood. He also asked the forest department to take appropriate measures to ensure medical facilities for the animals at the highlands during flood.
Considering high number of tourist footfall in the Park during winter, the Chief Minister also directed the forest department to develop the highlands in a tourist friendly manner so that the visitors could enjoy better view of the Park and its exquisite beauty from those highlands.
