Guwahati, Sep 23 (IANS): Assam's Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve (KNPTR) is likely to reopen for tourists after October 15, officials said.

Deputy Conservator of Forests Ramesh Gogoi said: "We have planned to open Kaziranga around October 15. But we could not finalise the date due to inclement weather in the state. Rainfall is happening across many places in Assam."

He also said that from the ashes of the rhino horns burnt last year, three statues of rhinos are in making at Kaziranga and will be completed within a week.

"We hope that this will attract tourists," Gogoi added.

Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve is a major tourist destination in Assam. Every year a huge number of visitors from India and abroad come here to see one-horned rhinos and other species.

Earlier, the park used to open from November 15. But due to the Covid pandemic, the last two years witnessed a decline in the number of tourists, and that is why the Forest Department planned to open the park in October to make up for the losses.

The World Rhino Day was observed on Thursday in Kaziranga to spread awareness about the different Rhinoceros species and the dangers they face.