One-horned rhinos set to get new homes in West Bengal

Kolkata: The one-horned rhinoceroses (Rhinoceros unicornis) are set to get new habitat. 

The Mamata Banerjee government is working on developing an infrastructure for the relocation of rhinos in two parks in West bengal, one of which is adjacent to the Gorumara National Park while the second one is located at Patlakhawa in Coochbehar. 

According to forest officials, the population of rhinos in the two parks had increased beyond the parks’ capacity and hence the need of the relocation was felt. The state forest department is already preparing grass forests for the natural habitat of these animals. Forest minister Binay Krishna Burman said, “We have a plan to shift 50 rhinos to the new forest parks that we are developing in North Bengal.” 

A senior forest department official said, “A team from the Centre visited the places identified by the state. They have agreed on principle and the final nod will come soon.”

The Asian Rhino Specialist Group (ARSG) under the International Union for Conservation of Nature had urged governments and conservation groups to find new sites that could absorb the increasing rhino population in November 2015.

The ARSG had also stressed the need for increasing the genetic diversity of the rhino populations in Jaldapara and Gorumara National Parks.

Rhino numbers in the state is increasing. From a mere 20 in 1990, it has risen to 255 in 2017. “We had initially identified the Buxa Tiger Reserve for the shift. But later the plan was shelved as the tiger reserve is in close proximity to the Assam border, which makes the tigers vulnerable to poaching,” the official added.