BHUBANESWAR: The Odisha government on Thursday termed Similipal as the 107th protected area of the country to be accorded national park status.
But, official records differ. According to the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Similipal is the 106th protected area of India. The wildlife database of the national agency points out that Odisha has two national parks with a total area of 990.70 sq km and it includes Similipal. Bhitarkanika - its 145 sq km area - was the first to be accorded national park status.
Forest department officials could not be reached even as a section of people considered it to be a gaffe that remained unnoticed.
It was not the only one though. The notification of the Forest, Environment and Climate Change department spelt Odisha as ‘Orissa’. The department notification issued on April 24 (Thursday) specifying 845.70 square km of Similipal Tiger Reserve as national park mentioned ‘Government of Odisha’ as ‘Government of Orissa’.