Kaziranga National Park Gets Its First Woman Field Director

Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve, located in Assam’s Golaghat and Nagaon districts, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, home to the one-horned rhinoceros. The 1,355-square-kilometer tiger reserve is regarded as one of the world's conservation success stories, with an estimated 2,613 greater one-horned rhinos, according to the March 2022 census. It also has a high population of tigers.

The Baroness Mary Victoria Leiter Curzon, wife of then Viceroy Lord George Nathaniel Curzon, is said to have played a vital role in the birth of Kaziranga after she visited the area in 1904.

More than a century later, a woman is set to take charge at the helm.

Dr Sonali Ghosh, Chief Conservator of Forests (Research, Education and Working Plan), became the first woman Field Director of the renowned Kaziranga National Park (KNP) this month. According to a PTI report, a recent decree by the Assam government has already paved the ground for this handover, with Dr Ghosh officially taking office on September 1.

Before this, Dr Ghosh was the Chief Conservator of Forests for the Research Education and Working Plan Division at the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Head of Forest Force's Guwahati Office.

Dr Ghosh is the first woman to lead the 118-year-old Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve, which has also been recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985.

About Kaziranga National Park

Kaziranga, in the language of the Karbi tribe, means "where the mountain goat has water." Flat grasslands with streams and large, landlocked water bodies (beels) constitute Kaziranga’s terrain. Tall elephant grass covers most of the land, sometimes opening into foraging grounds with shorter grasses, a few tall trees, and cane thickets. The low-lying terrain naturally rises southwards into the Karbi Hills; the transitional high woodlands were earlier a crucial part of this forest, offering safe ground to animals during the annual flood.

The great Indian one-horned rhinoceros may be the greatest attraction of Kaziranga, but it also has a high density of tigers, a good number of swamp deer (barasingha), wild water buffalo, and wild elephants. The park is also recognised as an Important Bird Area by Birdlife International. All these and more make Kaziranga National Park one of the best wildlife parks in India.