Floods throw up killers, saviours - Poachers get free run at KNP

An aerial view of an inundated part of Majuli seen during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi’s aerial survey of flood-affected areas in Assam’s Jorhat district on Monday. Picture by UB Photos 

Jorhat, July 2: Poachers are taking advantage of animals straying out of Kaziranga National Park to escape the floodwaters, with two rhinos being killed in a span of two days. 

The carcass of a rhino was recovered from Parku Pahar area under Karbi Anglong forest division near Tesu village opposite the Bagori range of Kaziranga National Park today.

Another male rhino was killed late last evening near the Pahar line forest camp at Dolamora, Haldibari Hills in Karbi Anglong district adjoining the Kohora range of the national park. 

Both the rhinos were found without their horns.

Forest ranger, east division of Karbi Anglong, Prahlad Kro told The Telegraph today that usually the rhinos did not stray towards Parku Pahar.

However, the current spate of floods had most likely forced the rhino to take shelter in this area and it had fallen prey to poachers’ bullets.

Kro said they had been patrolling the area constantly because of the floods.

“We have not been able to ascertain when the poachers struck. We were maintaining a 24-hour vigil, but there was a severe thunderstorm yesterday and it could have been killed during that time,” Kro said.

Director of Kaziranga National Park Sanjib Bora said during the annual floods the animals come out into the open and usually seek higher ground, fleeing to the hills of Karbi Anglong to escape the waters. “It becomes more difficult for us to monitor the animals when they move out from the forest area and poachers take advantage of this. We try our best to prevent the killings by undertaking joint patrols with our Karbi Anglong counterparts,” Bora said.

A section of forest guards were at the moment trailing a rhino calf which had strayed out of the park, “but it was not possible to keep track of each and every animal”, Bora added.

Anthony Thangcho, a veterinarian attached to the Wildlife Trust of India, Karbi Anglong, who is currently posted at the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation near the park, said the post-mortem done today revealed that the rhino had received three bullets, one in the forehead, and had died on the spot.

In another incident, a hog deer was rescued from the floodwaters by some villagers near the park today and handed over to the centre.

Forest department personnel also rescued a rhino calf yesterday, and it is being treated at the Centre.

Thangcho added that a leopard cub had also been treated at the centre today.

The toll of animals killed in the recent floods has been officially pegged at 81. However, unofficially, it is believed to be more than 100.

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