For elderly persons, physically-handicapped and small children, the State Forest Department introduced three solar powered auto rickshaws to visit the Bhitarkanika National Park on Saturday.
Rajnagar Mangrove (Forest) and Wildlife Division DFO Bimal Prasanna Acharya said, “The solar powered auto rickshaw is an eco-friendly device and it would be able to control environment pollution along with noise pollution in the park without disturbing the wild animals.
Those tourists, who fail to walk in the Dangamala Crocodile Research Centre, would be able to enjoy Bhitarkanika by riding on the auto rickshaws, informed Acharya.
The three solar powered auto rickshaws have been purchased with an estimated cost of Rs 4.97 lakh from the Green Energy Solution of Bhubaneswar. As many as five persons can sit in a solar powered auto rickshaw. The Forest Department has decided to fix a sum of Rs 20 from each tourist using the auto rickshaws for visiting the Dangamala crocodile scheme area within Bhitarkanika. The tourists are going to avail the auto rickshaw service from August 1. The park which was closed for three months from May1 to July 31 owing to the estuarine crocodile nesting season, would open on August 1.
Meanwhile, the park authority has made it mandatory for all the visitors to bring their identity proof for their entry into the park.
As many as 27 boats have got licence to operate under the Kanika forest range. The accommodation price has gone high since April 1.