Baripada (Odisha), Nov 1 (PTI) The Similipal National Park in Odisha's Mayurbhanj district was opened for tourists on Tuesday after remaining closed for five months due to monsoon, an official said.

The park was closed to tourists from June 16.

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Similipal, spread over 2750 square kilometres is one of the largest Tiger Reserves in India.

On the first day, 142 tourists in 31 vehicles took a tour of the National Park, Similipal Tiger Reserve Field Director T Ashok Kumar said.

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Kumar greeted the tourists with roses at an entry point in the morning.

Similipal National Park houses a wide variety of flora and fauna, breathtaking waterfalls and green meadows. It is also home to a rare black melanistic Royal Bengal Tiger, the field director said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)