Orang National Park records an increase of 24 rhinos

OUR CORRESPONDENT

MANGALDAI: Creating a record with zero poaching in Orang National Park and Tiger Reserve (ONPTR) since 2018, bringing a good news for nature lovers and tourists, the rhino population in the park has been increased to 24 over the last four years in the rhino census conducted on March 20 and 21. Divisional Forest Officer of Mangaldai Wildlife Division Pradipta Baruah on Monday has confirmed it before media persons immediately after the completion of the two-day rhino population estimation in the national park on Monday. "I am very happy to inform you that rhino population has been increased considerably over the last few years. We have recorded a total of 125 numbers of rhino with an increase of 24 in comparison to the last estimation in 2018," DFO Baruah said on Monday afternoon. "In the two day duration of rhino census, 43 males, 49 females and 23 calves have been recorded while the sex of the remaining 10 couldn't be determined," added DFO Baruah.

The two day census earlier began in the park at 5:30 on Sunday which was divided into sixteen different forest blocks. Altogether sixteen elephants were used to carry three persons each including a numerator, a forest staff and a 'mahut'. In addition to forest staff, people from Rhino conservation organizations like WWF and Aranyak and faculty from Mangaldai college took part in the process. Retired senior forest officials B N Talukdar and Ritesh Bhattacharya, Conservator of Forest, (Wildlife) Majidul Hussain, DFO, Dibrugarh (Territorial) Sandeep Kumar, Amit Sarma of WWF and Bibhab Talukdar of Aranyak and media persons attended the process. In the last census in 2018, the park recorded a total of 101 rhinos. During this period altogether nine rhinos died due to natural factors without a single case of poaching.

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