Kendrapada, July 31 -- Bhitarkanika National Park in Odisha's Kendrapada district will reopen to tourists and visitors from August 1 after remaining closed for three months during the annual nesting and breeding season of estuarine crocodiles.
The Rajnagar Mangrove (Wildlife) Forest Division had enforced the annual closure from May 1 to July 31 to ensure a peaceful environment for the nesting and breeding of estuarine (saltwater) crocodiles, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of the Rajnagar Mangrove (Forest) and Wildlife Division, Vardaraj Gaonkar, said.
The DFO said the restriction was also aimed at preventing crocodile-human conflicts, which are more likely to occur during the reptiles' breeding and nesting period.
During the annual surv...