Kendrapara: The world-famous Bhitarkanika National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary in Odisha’s Kendrapara district is all set to reopen on August 1 after remaining closed for three months for visitors.
As per the official reports, the entry of visitors into the wildlife sanctuary was prohibited for nearly three months for the smooth breeding and nesting activities of estuarine crocodiles.
With the opening of the national park, a Canopy bridge is being built in it. The Skywalk will be 600 meters long while it will be 15 feet high. The Canopy bridge has been built with wood only. Apart from this, a selfie point has been made in the middle of the Canopy bridge for the visitors.
Meanwhile, this year, the counting of crocodile nests has been completed. This year 114 nests have been identified while last year 122 nests were counted. The park was closed from May 1. The authorities took this decision to close the sanctuary for a brief period to ensure the safety of tourists as the reptiles turn violent during their breeding and nesting activities.
Earlier, the park remained closed for nine days in January 2024. The nine-day closure was enforced from January 5th to 13th to facilitate the annual census of estuarine crocodiles and migratory birds in the sanctuary. Crocodile counting was going on for 3 days from January 10th to 12th.
According to the crocodile census, a total of 1,811 crocodiles have been counted in the Delta area of the Mahanadi River, canals, and drenches of the sanctuary this year. There has been an increase of 18 crocodiles compared to last year’s 1,793 crocodiles.
