Guwahati: Authorities are preparing to meet challenges posed by annual floods in Kaziranga National Park (KNP) in Assam.
IFAW-WTI run Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC), in the vicinity, has been assisting the Forest Department for many years in rescuing animals from various parts of the park and rehabilitating them back to the wild whenever possible.
While a few lower areas of the park flooded a week ago, forcing the animals to cross over to higher ground, currently the water level has stabilised and even decreased in some regions.
The team at the centre, however, is ready in anticipation of the impending floods with a plan of action, made to assist the Kaziranga authorities, an WTI release said here.
Keeping in mind rescue missions of previous years, the team has fabricated multiple rescue cages for mammals, reptiles and birds, which include five cages made especially for deer.
The Mobile Veterinary Service unit at the centre has also been put at the stand 24×7 to handle any rescue emergency which may come its way.
‘We have been rescuing wildlife in Kaziranga since 2002 and like every year, the team at CWRC is on call at all hours of every day to deal with any incident. We shall also be enlisting the help of our other MVS units in other parts of the state when necessary,’ said Dr Rathin Barman, Deputy Director of WTI.
‘With endangered species such as greater one-horned rhinoceros, elephants, eastern swamp deer, among the animals affected by the flood the necessity for prompt successful rescue and rehabilitation drastically increases at this time of the year,’ Dr Barman said, adding, ‘Last year during the floods we rescued 129 mammals, birds and reptiles, which included a lot of hog deer, some swamp deer and two Asian elephant calves, and eventually conducted surveys on the flood affected animals in the park.’
Efforts are also being made by the IFAW-WTI team, along with the Assam Forest Department and other local NGOs, to make people aware about the rescue protocols for the wildlife which may get displaced during the floods, in a bid to bring down the casualties this year. (UNI)
