‘Normal’ floods blessing for Kaziranga (Indian Express 14 September 2010)

Even as the rising water-level of the Brahmaputra entered and inundated vast portions of the 840-sq km Kaziranga National Park in Assam in the past four days, for the authorities it has come as a blessing. A “normal” flood in the area helps clear huge quantity of debris from inside the Park.
“About 60 per cent of the Park area was inundated, forcing the animals to either take shelter in the highlands or cross the national highway to seek refuge in the lower ranges of the Karbi Anglong hills. But with the water beginning to recede since Sunday evening, nature is only helping us clear huge quantity of debris from inside it,” Surajit Dutta, director of the Park said.
The water level has receded by about 10 centimetres since Sunday evening, and with the Brahmaputra water level also slightly falling in Dibrugarh and Jorhat upstream of Kaziranga, the National Park is expected to register further fall in the flood level.
“Kaziranga being a major natural hatchery for fish, requires floods to distribute the fish across the Brahmaputra,” Dutta added.