Assam relaxes flood-related restrictions on vehicular movement near Kaziranga

According to Kaziranga director Sonali Ghosh, this year’s floodwater level was the highest in the last three decades

Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Tuesday announced the relaxation of restrictions on vehicular movements on highways near the Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve citing improvement in the flood situation.

A flooded area in Assam. (PTI Photo)

“In view of the improvement in the overall flood situation, from today, light motor vehicles and buses will be allowed to move through the Kaziranga section of the national highway normally, subject to speed restrictions. However, trucks will be allowed to move only in a convoy,” he said on X (formerly Twitter).

The restrictions were tightened last month after the national park was severely inundated by floodwater. At one point, almost 80% of the park was inundated and as a result, several animals took shelter on National Highway-715 and nearby areas.

According to Kaziranga director Sonali Ghosh, this year’s floodwater level was the highest in the last three decades, though the animal mortality rate was lesser than the past years.

As per the High Flood Years summary of Kaziranga, the water level touched 87.47 mts (recorded at Nimatighat) this year. The highest level before this year was recorded in 1991 (87.37) followed by 2020 (87.35), 1988 (87.28), 2017 (87.27).

This year, 212 animals died in Kaziranga due to floods, including 10 rhinos. Two of the animals died due to vehicle collisions. In 2020, a total of 22 animals died because of road accidents during the floods. In 2019, that number was 17.

The chief minister said that animals such as elephants are returning to Kaziranga. “A key indicator of receding floodwaters is animal migration. The good news is that our thermal cameras have spotted more and more elephants returning to their natural habitat in Kaziranga as water levels decrease,” he said.

According to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority, 5.11 lakh people in 17 districts are still affected due to the flood situation.