Guwahati: Kaziranga National Park plans to revise jeep and elephant safari fees and introduce online bookings ahead of the new tourism season.Forest minister Jayanta Mallabaruah said safari charges remained unchanged for over a decade. “It’s been over 10 to 11 years that there have been no changes in the jeep safari or elephant safari,” he said.The forest department will develop a digital platform allowing tourists to book jeep and elephant safaris and make payments online.Mallabaruah said measures were being planned to streamline tourism operations, promote ecotourism and ensure that a larger share of revenue reaches local communities.Nearly 4.7 lakh tourists visited Kaziranga during the 2025-26 season, with foreign tourist numbers rising significantly, officials said.The department also plans to restrict mobile phones and other electronic devices in the park’s core and remote areas, in line with a Supreme Court direction issued in Nov 2025.Details of the revised fees, online booking system and other measures will be announced soon.Mallabaruah, who visited the park’s core areas, also expressed concern over invasive plants and discussed measures to eradicate them.“I have reviewed the present scenario of the core areas of the park. Invasive plants increase in the park if floods do not occur in the park. We have discussed the measures to be taken to destroy these plants. By that time, the invasive plants will die if a flood happens in the park. Otherwise, we have to take measures for that.”
