Assam: Rhinoceros spotted wandering in village

Sonitpur (Assam): A lone rhinoceros was spotted wandering in a farm field in a village at Jamuguri in the Sonitpur district of Assam on Friday morning.

Villagers tried to drive out the rhinoceros but it started running helter-skelter.

Later, Dhekiajuli forest rangers fired shots to chase away the endangered animal that inadvertently entered the village from Orang National Park.

Netrajyoti Gayan ranger, Dhekiajuli forest officer said, "The rhinoceros came yesterday from Orang National Park. This morning, it has entered the village. We are trying to control the situation and chase it away to the National Park. In the morning, we cannot drive it away as villages are travelling on the roads. If we try to drive it away forcefully then a mishap can occur. It will be under watch and we will safely drive it away to Orang National Park by evening."

He further said that the police from Dhekiajuli police station were present to maintain the law and order.

The Assam forest department has faced a new challenge to protect the one-horned Rhinoceros in the state after a case of poachers using tranquillizers to remove rhino horn came to light in Assam's Orang National Park last year. Three species of rhino are critically endangered.

(ANI)