Traditional huts at the ethnic village. A Telegraph picture

July 24: Watching the one-horned rhino take a royal mud-bath at the Kaziranga National Park will soon come with the bonus of getting a glimpse into the lives of Karbi villagers.

An ethnic craft village, being built by the Karbi Anglong administration at a cost of Rs 3.5-crore, will be ready to welcome guests by November.

A source in the district administration said more than 85 per cent work is complete and the mega project will be through before the next tourist season.

Nearly 120 Karbi families from neighbouring Chandra Singh Ingti and Dhakrang Ingti will people the ethnic village and receive visitors in their traditional style.

Erected under the Rashtriya Sam Vikas Yojana, the village has been designed to give tourists a feel of living in a Karbi village.

Eleven huts have been built where the local villagers will serve traditional food to tourists.

“Each of these huts will reflect the way of life of a particular community and with the help of the community’s own guide, a tourist will get to know more about the tribe,” the source said.

Raised on more than 16.5 hectares, the project includes a garden of medicinal plants, a children’s park, an industrial complex that will hold exhibitions and sale of ethnic products.

The village will also have a conference hall with an amphitheatre for cultural shows.

Sixteen youths from Kohora have been trained in Rajasthan to monitor the project.

“Till now, people know Kaziranga only for the national park. Our ambition is to show them that along with the park, this area should also be known for the simple-minded tribes with their rich socio-cultural habits,” said the divisional officer of soil conservation department, A.K. Borua.

“After his Kaziranga tour, a visitor generally visits the nearby villages to interact with the local people. Now the tourists will have to look no farther than the ethnic village,” said deputy commissioner M. Angamuthu.