Kaziranga – Assam: Although rhinos moving out of the Kaziranga National Park are a common phenomenon, of late such incidents have increased, officials who recently rescued a rhino near Lakhimpur Town said.

“There has been a space constraint in the park due to the increase in rhino population.” Rathin Burman of Wildlife Trust of India said.

“Rhinos which stray from the park are at higher risk of accidents or fall in the hands of poachers.” Burman said.

On January 25, a 40-year-old rhino with almost a dozen gunshot injuries was rescued from Diju Chapori in Lakhimpur District – nearly 450 kilometers away by road.

The rhino’s path could be about 250 kilometers.

She was tranquilized before putting her on a truck – for her return journey to Agratoli range of the park. She died an hour after her arrival.

She crossed the river Brahmaputra, highways, a railway track and several human settlements before reaching Diju Chapori, – surprising park officials on her adventure.

“Bullet wounds all over her body indicated that poachers might have shot at her. There were maggots in her wounds.” Dr. Anjan Talukdar, of WTI said.

“Rhinos when noticed outside the park are provided protection by park officials and they then try to bring it back. If the distance is too far, as in the case of Lakhimpur, tranquilization is the only option”

Earlier on January 23, two other rhinos were spotted in Kumargaon in Golaghat district. Next day, park officials succeeded in bringing them back.

“At some places, rhinos raided crops, causing resentment among villagers, which can be a potential threat for their conservation in the future.” Talukdar said.

Last year, one adult rhino died after it fell into a deep mud pit in Latekujaan tea estate in Golaghat district. The rhino created mayhem in a nearby village before it met with the accident.

Several attempts to rescue the rhino by a joint team of Forest and WTI staff had failed.

The Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation in Kaziranga (CWRC) handles almost 150 rescue cases every year, which includes a variety of rare wild animals – rhinos, elephants, leopards, tiger and variety of reptiles and avian species.

The centre was setup in the year 2001 by WTI and its partner, the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), and the Assam Forest Department.