GUWAHATI: Alertness and pro-active role played by the villagers and village defence organisations (VDOs) from peripheral areas of the famed Kaziranga National Park (KNP) have been key to discernible reduction in hunting of one-horned rhinoceros in and around the Park since 2013.
Informing this, Superintendent of Police, Golaghat District — a large portion of the KNP core area is located within this district – Pushparaj Singh on Monday appealed for sustained cooperation from people and VDOs in keeping rhino hunters at bay in Kaziranga landscape.
The police official was addressing a meeting of over 100 VDO members from Bokakhat subdivision of Golaghat district who operate in the vicinity of the UNESCO World Heritage Site and the prime abode of one-horned rhinoceros in the country. He called for prompt inputs from fringe area VDOs on movement of rhino hunters in the area.
The conclave-cum-orientation meeting of the VDO members on prevention of wildlife poaching and conservation of biodiversity, was held at Bokakhat near the KNP under the aegis of Legal and Advocacy Division (LAD) of biodiversity conservation and research organisation, Aaranyak.
“Aaranyak has been continuously playing the bridge between the fringe villagers/VDOs and the enforcement agencies including Forest and Police departments because of its strong belief that sans cooperation from villagers and grassroots organisations like the VDOs it would be a Himalayan task to save the rhino from hunter only with personnel from Forest and Police forces,” the head of LAD and the CEO of Aaranyak, Dr Bibhab Kumar Talukdar Said.
Addressing the VDO members, Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO), Bokakhat, Bibek Shyam urged the VDO members to help the administration to uproot illicit liquor dens which are meeting points of criminals and wildlife hunters, from the fringe areas of the KNP.
The Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Bokakhat Police Station, Dibyajyoti Dutta appealed for prompt information from VDO members on presence of rhino hunters in the area while Deputy Superintendent of Police, Partha Protim Saikia suggested Aaranyak to reward the VDO members whose efforts result in prevention of rhino poaching.
Honourary Wildlife Warden, Uttam Saikia made an audio-visual presentation to enlighten the VDO members about different ways used by the hunters to kill rhinos and also about different behaviours of rhinos that make the animal vulnerable to hunters.
The meeting which was presided over by Mridul Bora, president of Bokakhat PS committee of the village defence
organisations, was also attended by Ramesh Gogoi, DFO (Wildlife), Eastern Assam, Bidyut Bikash Bora, Ranger of Agoratoli Rage of the KNP, Dr Babulal More, Retired College Principal amongst others.
Manas Kumar Bhattacharjya, Manager, LAD of Aaranyak informed that in tune with the Government of India’s policy of taking key stakeholders into confidence in efforts to conserve wildlife and biodiversity, the organisation would hold a series of such interaction with members of VDOs and grassroots panchayat raj institutions in coming days.