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Kaziranga National Park is spread over an area of 430 sq km on the south bank of the Brahmaputra River in Assam. Kaziranga was declared a reserve forest as early as in 1908 AD and was officially closed for shooting. It was made a wildlife sanctuary in 1950 and designated a national park by 1974. The park is surrounded by hills of Barail and Karbi Anglong. There are plans to extend the boundaries of the park to include the Brahmaputra River in the north and a part of the Mikir hill ranges in the south.
Kaziranga National Park is especially known for single horned Indian rhinos or Rhinoceros Unicornis. There were only a few dozen rhinos when the area became reserved and now it boasts of a population of more than thousand of them. Although the rhinos are still endangered yet they are protected here. You may easily spot a rhino or two on tours to Kaziranga. The park was listed as the World Heritage Site in 1985.
On tours to Kaziranga, you may also spot Capped Langurs, Elephants, Hog Badgers, Hoolock Gibbons, Indian Bison, Jackals, Jungle Cats, Leopard Cats, Porcupines, Pythons, Sloth Bears, Swamp Deer, Sambhars, Hog Deer, Tigers, Wild Buffaloes and Wild Pigs. You may also find avian population in the park, which increases considerably in the winter due to migrating birds.
Tours to Kaziranga should be undertaken from November to April. The park is closed from April to September because of the monsoon season.
How to Reach
By Air: The nearest airport is at Jorhat. It is 96 km from Kaziranga National Park.
By Rail: The nearest railhead is at Guwahati. It is around 217 km from Kaziranga National Park.
By Road: Kaziranga National Park is well connected by bus service with towns and cities in the neighboring states of West Bengal, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.
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