Assam CM Sonowal takes stock of rhinos rescued from floods in Kaziranga

Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal took stock of nine baby rhinos rescued from the recent spate of floods and kept at a rehabilitation center in the Kaziranga national park on Thursday.

Sonowal interacted with officials and got a briefing on the status of the baby rhinos, baby elephants and some other animals who were separated from their groups when flood water inundated the park, which houses around 2400 rhinos, including 200 calf (0-1 year) and 250 juveniles (1-3 years).

The Chief Minister also feed a few rhinos and elephants at the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation where they are being kept, official sources said.

Kaziranga National Park is a world heritage site, notified by the UNESCO in 1985. The park houses world’s largest population of the one-horned rhinoceros and provides refuge to a large number of wild animals including the endangered Royal Bengal tiger and the Asian elephant.

Flanked by the Brahmaputra River towards its north, Kaziranga lies in the river’s flood plain and experiences annual flooding during monsoon.

Although, these annual inundations play a significant role in maintaining the fertility of the habitat, they also regularly cause large-scale temporary displacement of wild animals.

Animals also get displaced in their attempt to escape to higher grounds, often young ones, unable to keep pace with their parents get left behind.