Guwahati: Union Environment, Forest and Climate Change ministry will hold a meeting with the forest department officials of Assam on May 24 on the alleged anomalies in the estimation of the rhinos in Kaziranga National Park.
Assam’s Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) and Head of Forest Force (HoFF), Chief Wild Life Warden, Director of Kaziranga National Park (KNP), evaluators of rhino enumeration exercise in KNP and SPIO of rhino enumeration exercise in KNP have been asked to join the meeting.
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Rakesh Kumar Jagenia, Deputy Inspector General of Forests (Wildlife) of Union Environment, Forest and Climate Change ministry in a notice said that the Addl. Director General of Forests & Director, of Wild Life Preservation will chair the meeting.
Earlier on February 19, following a complaint filed by Assam environmental activist Rohit Choudhury, alleging anomalies in the estimation of the rhinos in Kaziranga National Park, the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change sought a “factual report” from the Chief Wildlife Warden (CWLW) of Assam.
Activist Rohit Choudhury in his letter Union Environment and Forest Ministry had alleged that the rhino population estimation in the Kaziranga National Park in 2022 was inflated by manipulating survey data sheets.
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According to Choudhury, data sheets from the enumeration across the 84 compartments of the national park showed that the actual count of rhinos was 2,042.
But this figure was “adjusted” after a sample survey in some randomly selected compartments to show 2,613 rhinos —an increase of 200 from the 2,413 rhinos estimated in 2018, the activist had alleged.
Rohit Choudhury had said the survey data sheets were doctored to “mislead the government and the public on the actual number of rhinos” in the national park.