One-horned rhino killed in Kaziranga
Guwahati, Feb 26 : Poachers have killed another one-horned rhino in Assam's high-security Kaziranga National Park, an official said Tuesday.
This is the ninth rhino killed by poachers in Kaziranga and its adjoining forest divisions this year, the officials said. The carcass of the rhino was spotted Monday. The horn of the rhino was missing.
A .303 rifle and some live bullets were also recovered from near the carcass of the animal, the officials said.
"The poachers had shot the rhino... 700 metres from the Erasuti anti-poaching camp. The poachers probably shot at the rhino using a silencer as the guards did not hear any gun shot," said park director N.K. Vasu.
The spate in poaching assumes significance as Assam has recently created a new elite force, the Assam Forest Protection Force (AFPF) and armed them with sophisticated weapons to deal with poachers.