The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has complimented the people of Assam for their efforts toward rhino conservation in the state after zero poaching incidents were reported in 2022.
Key points
- Assam recorded zero poaching of endangered rhinos for the first time in nearly 45 years in 2022. Chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said no rhino was poached at Kaziranga, Manas, Orang national parks and Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary last year, calling it landmark.
- As many as 191 rhinos were poached in Assam between 2000 and 2021. In 2013 and 2014, 27 rhino deaths each were reported. In 2020 and 2021, two rhinos each were killed. Before 2022, no poaching of rhinos was last reported in 1977.
About Indian rhinoceros
- The Indian rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis) is found only in the Brahmaputra valley, parts of North Bengal, and parts of southern Nepal.
- It has a single black horn that can grow up to 60 cm, and a tough, grey-brown hide with skin folds, which gives the animal its characteristic armour-plated look.
- The rhino’s horn is composed primarily of a protein called keratin–the same substance that makes up human hair and nails.
- The Indian rhino is listed as vulnerable in the IUCN Red List; it was earlier placed in the endangered category.
- Assam is home to the world’s largest population of one-horned rhinos. There are nearly 2,895 rhinos in the state with 2,613 of them concentrated in the Kaziranga National Park, 125 in Orang National Park, 107 in Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary and 40 in Manas National Park.
Causes of poaching
- Rhinos have been poached for their horn, which is prized in some cultures. Ground rhino horn is used in traditional Chinese medicine to cure a range of ailments, from cancer to hangovers, and also as an aphrodisiac; in Vietnam, a rhino horn is considered a status symbol.
Conservation measures
- In 2019, the Assam government constituted a Special Rhino Protection Force to keep a check on rhino poaching and related activities at Kaziranga National Park (KNP).
- On September 22, World Rhino Day, in 2021, almost 2,500 rhino horns were burnt publicly in Bokakhat in Kaziranga National Park to bust myths about rhino horns, and to send a loud and clear message to the poachers and smugglers that such items have no value.
(Sources: HT and Indian Express)
