Jeep safari inside Chitwan National Park has been suspended from Wednesday as the monsoon sets in, with authorities citing wildlife protection, deteriorating forest roads and safety risks for visitors.

The park has a long-standing practice of halting jeep safari operations during the rainy season and resuming them around the first week of Ashoj after conditions improve.

In a notice issued on Tuesday, the park office said the service would remain closed until further notice. It said the monsoon period is a crucial breeding season for most wildlife and birds found in the park.

The notice added that heavy rainfall damages unpaved forest tracks, triggers flash floods in small streams inside the park, and leads to fallen trees blocking routes.

Information officer Avinas Thapa Magar said the decision was taken to reduce risks for both wildlife and visitors.

He said, “For wildlife conservation, habitat restoration and tourist safety, the commercial jungle drive operated inside the park has been closed from July 1 until further notice.”

Tourists visiting the park typically rely on jeep safaris to observe wild animals. Safari operations in buffer zone community forests outside the core park area, however, continue even during the monsoon season.