Kaziranga National Park

The Kaziranga National Park is the only National Park in the State situated in central Assam with an area of 430sq. km. It is the home of the great Indian one horned Rhinoceros (Unicornis). The landscape of Kaziranga is of sheer forest, tall elephant grass, rugged reeds, mellow marshes and shallow pools.

Kaziranga has a history of its own. Lady Curzon first heard about the Rhinos of Kaziranga from her British tea planter friends and came to Assam in 1904-05. Although she could not see the animal, she spotted hoof prints with three toes and believed that such an animal did exist. On her return, she persuaded lord Curzon to do something to save this animal from total annihilation.

Lord Curzon set the wheels of the British bureaucracy rolling, and on June 1, 1905, a preliminary notification announcing the intention of the Government to declare 57,273.60 acres of Kaziranga as a reserved forest was issued. Finally, Kaziranga was declared as reserved forest on January 3, 1908, and was officially closed for shooting.

On January 28, 1913 the area of reserved forest was expanded with the inclusion of another 13,506 acres. Kaziranga was declared a Game Sanctuary on November10, 1916. In 1938, the then conservator of forest, A.J.W. Milroy stopped all poaching and opened Kaziranga to visitors. Because the word 'game' connotated animals for hunting, in 1950, the then senior conservator of forest Mr P D Stracey, changed the term to 'wildlife sanctuary'.

Gradually the sanctuary, begun as a nucleus encompassing a small area, expanded to its present size. Finally on February 11, 1974, the name was changed to Kaziranga National Park.

The one horned Rhinoceros, Elephant, Indian bison, Swamp Deer, Samber, Hog Deer, Sloth Bear, Tiger, Leopard cat, Jungle cat, Hog badger, Capped langur, Hollock gibbon, Jackal, Goose, Hornbills, Ibis, Cormorants, Egret, Heron fishing eagle etc. all
form a part of the very complex ecological balance of the park. During Winter a large number of migratory birds are also seen here.

How To Reach
Kaziranga is 239 km from the Guwahati airport and 97 km from the Jorhat airport. Regular bus services run by the State Transport Corporation, Travel Agencies, Tourist taxis are available. The Bus stoppage for Kaziranga is known as Kohora. The nearest railhead is Furkating at a distance of 75 km.

General Information
The average temperature around Kaziranga National Park in summer is 32.2° C and in winter 10° C. The average rainfall is 160 cm. Tourists are advised to wear cotton in summer and woolens in winter. The best season for visiting Kaziranga is November to April. The off season is from May to October.

Manas National Park

The only Tiger Project in Assam, Manas is one of India's most magnificent National Parks. It is situated on the bank of the river Manas at the foothills of the Himalayas. It is a well known World heritage site with it's unique combination of scenic beauty and rare wealth of wildlife.

Covering an area of 519.77 Sq. Kms, it has a core area of 360 Kms and is situated in Barpeta District. Manas is one of the nine tiger reserve sanctuaries in India. Tigers however are not the only wildlife to be found here. Manas has its own peculiar faunal features, the rarest species of which are Hispid Hare, Pigmy Hog, Golden Langur, Indian Rhinoceros, Asiatic Buffalo etc. Other commonly seen animals are Elephant, Leopard, Clouded Leopard, Himalayan Bear, Wild Boar, Samber, Swamp Deer, Hog Deer etc.

Hundreds of the winged species migrate to the friendly climate of Manas during Winter. Among them are Riverchats (White Capped Redstars), Forktails, Cormorants and various types of ducks including the Ruddy Shelduck. The woodland birds are no less charming and include the Indian Hornbill and the Great Pied Hornbill.

Manas is 176 kms from Guwahati by road. The nearest airport is Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport at Guwahati. The nearest railhead is Barpeta Road Station which is 40 kms away from Manas.
Season to visit is from November to April.

Dibru - Saikhowa National Park

The fourth National Park of the state, this National Park lies partly in Dibrugarh district and partly in Tinsukia district and covers an area of about 340 sq.km.

Of the seven parts of the park one part is wet land and the rest is mainly grassland and dense forest. The main attractions of Dibru-Saikhowa National Park are its semi-wild horse and White winged Wood- Duck. Other animals are Leopard, Clouded Leopard, Elephant, Sambar, Slow Loris, Indian wild water Buffalo, Capped Langur, Gangetic River Dolphin, Indian Wild Dog etc.

More than 250 varieties of local and migratory birds are also found in this Park.

The best season to visit is from November to March.

Nameri National Park

Situated at the foot hills of eastern Himalayas, Nameri National Park covers an area of about 200 sq. km. Hills, deciduous forests and the river Jia Bhoroli have all added a unique charm to it.

It is about 35 km. from Tezpur town which is 181 km. from Guwahati.The nearest airport is Salonibari(Tezpur).

Many wildlife species are found here such as the Tiger, Elephant, Leopard, Indian Bison, Sloth Bear, Himalayan Black Bear, Pangolin, Indian Wild Dog, Civet Cat, Capped Langur etc.

Nameri is a haven for bird watchers which include the most endangered White Winged Wood duck, four species of Hornbill in abundance, the small and beautiful Scarlet Minivet, to name a few. Many species of reptiles are also found in this National Park.

It is an entomologist's paradise. A huge variety of different butterflies and moths are found here. Atlas Moth with a wing span of more than 10 inches has also been spotted here.

The best season to visit is from October to April.

Orang (Rajiv Gandhi) National Park

It is a miniature Kaziranga covering an area of 78.81 sq. kms. and is situated in the Darrang District of Assam. Sixty percent of the sanctuary is grassland. The animals seen in this sanctuary are the One-horned Rhinoceros, Leopard, Elephant, Sambar, Barking Deer, Tiger, varieties of water birds, Green Pigeon, Florican, Teal , Goose, etc.

Various species of birds such as the Pelican, Cormorant, Greylag Goose, Large Whistling TeaGreat Adjutant Stork, King Vulture etc. have also found this sanctuary to be their ideal habitat.

Orang is 150 kms from Guwahati and 31 kms from Tezpur. The nearest railhead is Rongapara and the nearest airport is Salonibari(Tezpur). Both Govt. & Private buses ply regularly from Guwahati.