Naresh Mitra, TNN | Feb 18, 2013
GUWAHATI: There has been no let up in rhino poaching in Assam yet. On Saturday, poachers killed another rhino at Kaziranga National Park and chopped off its horn. With the latest killing, the rhino poaching toll this year has risen to seven in Kaziranga.
The killing took place in the Kawoimari area under Bagori forest range of the park. The carcass was found on Sunday.
Park director N K Vasu said the rhino was poached in the interior parts of the park and forest officials had to fire in the air to scare a herd of elephants so that they could reach the spot.
Vasu said three rhinos were killed inside the park, while another four were poached after the animals strayed out of Kaziranga.
"We did have intelligence inputs about the activity of poachers. But unfortunately, the rhino could not be saved. On the northern bank of the Brahmaputra, poachers have stepped up their activities. There are many sand islands from where poachers operate. We are doing our best to deal with them," Vasu said.
Soon after the news of poaching spread in the fringes of Kaziranga, locals surrounded the director's and divisional forest officer's office at Bokakhat, accusing the forest department for its failure to stop killing of rhinos. Many of the protestors also planned to stage a demonstration on Monday.
In a separate event, Assamese film stars, including Nishita Goswami, joined a public campaign to save rhinos, which is also the state animal.
Kaziranga lost at least 18 rhinos to poachers last year. This is, in addition, to the 28 rhinos killed during floods between June and September last year.
Assam boasts that it houses two-third of the world's Indian one-horned rhinos. Kaziranga alone has over 2,000 rhinos. While floods are a part of Kaziranga's ecosystem, leading to the death of nearly 700 different wildlife species, including rhinos last year. However, wildlife crime experts said the spurt in poaching in recent times did not augur well for the long-term conservation of rhinos if foolproof mechanism is not put in place right now.
Wildlife crime experts said the rise in the demand for rhino horns in China and Vietnam has escalated the killings of the one-horned pachyderm in Kaziranga. Generally horns are smuggled out to Myanmar through the porous international border in Manipur.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/flora-fauna/Poachers-kills-another-rhino-in-Kaziranga-chop-off-horn/articleshow/18551335.cms
GUWAHATI: There has been no let up in rhino poaching in Assam yet. On Saturday, poachers killed another rhino at Kaziranga National Park and chopped off its horn. With the latest killing, the rhino poaching toll this year has risen to seven in Kaziranga.
The killing took place in the Kawoimari area under Bagori forest range of the park. The carcass was found on Sunday.
Park director N K Vasu said the rhino was poached in the interior parts of the park and forest officials had to fire in the air to scare a herd of elephants so that they could reach the spot.
Vasu said three rhinos were killed inside the park, while another four were poached after the animals strayed out of Kaziranga.
"We did have intelligence inputs about the activity of poachers. But unfortunately, the rhino could not be saved. On the northern bank of the Brahmaputra, poachers have stepped up their activities. There are many sand islands from where poachers operate. We are doing our best to deal with them," Vasu said.
Soon after the news of poaching spread in the fringes of Kaziranga, locals surrounded the director's and divisional forest officer's office at Bokakhat, accusing the forest department for its failure to stop killing of rhinos. Many of the protestors also planned to stage a demonstration on Monday.
In a separate event, Assamese film stars, including Nishita Goswami, joined a public campaign to save rhinos, which is also the state animal.
Kaziranga lost at least 18 rhinos to poachers last year. This is, in addition, to the 28 rhinos killed during floods between June and September last year.
Assam boasts that it houses two-third of the world's Indian one-horned rhinos. Kaziranga alone has over 2,000 rhinos. While floods are a part of Kaziranga's ecosystem, leading to the death of nearly 700 different wildlife species, including rhinos last year. However, wildlife crime experts said the spurt in poaching in recent times did not augur well for the long-term conservation of rhinos if foolproof mechanism is not put in place right now.
Wildlife crime experts said the rise in the demand for rhino horns in China and Vietnam has escalated the killings of the one-horned pachyderm in Kaziranga. Generally horns are smuggled out to Myanmar through the porous international border in Manipur.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/flora-fauna/Poachers-kills-another-rhino-in-Kaziranga-chop-off-horn/articleshow/18551335.cms
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