The poachers had killed yet another one-horned rhino in Assam on the wee hours of Monday and managed to decamp with its horn even as police have arrested four frontline staffs of the park for their nexus with the poachers.
This is the eighth one-horned rhino killed by poachers in Assam since January this year.
The poaching took place near Sootea in Sonitpur district in Assam. Assam Forest Department officials said the one-horned rhino has strayed away from the sixth edition of Kaziranga National Park.
“The poachers have killed the rhino and managed to decamp with its horn. We have launched an operation to catch the poachers,” said a senior park official.
The poachers had killed two one-horned rhinos during and ahead of the visit of Britain’s Royal couple Prince William and Princess Kate Middleton to the park last month. While the poachers have killed one rhino a day ahead of the Royal couple’s arrival in the park, another rhino was killed when the couple was spending their second night at a private resort near the park.
“Some civilians spotted a carcass of a one-horned rhino near Sootea in Sonitpur. Based on their information, our guards went to the place and recovered the carcass. The horn and tail of the rhino was missing, indicating it a case of poaching,” the official said, adding that the rhino had strayed outside the park about two days back.
Meanwhile, Assam police have arrested four forest staff deployed at Kaziranga for helping a group of poachers in killing an one-horned rhino in the park last year and later hiding the carcass of the rhino.
“We have arrested four poachers a few days back and based on their confession four forest staff of Kaziranga were arrested on Sunday. These four forest guards have not only helped the poachers in killing a rhino in the park but also hidden the carcass of the rhino in October last year,” police said.