Carcasses of animals were found washed ashore with water levels beginning to recede across north Bengal following Sunday’s floods.
A single-horned rhino, three bison and three spotted deer were found dead in and around the Gorumara National Park in Jalpaiguri district, senior forest department officers said.
In the Jaldapara National Park in Alipurduar district, a barking deer was found dead at Kodalbasti in the Chilapata forest. At least three single-horned rhinos, which strayed into human habitats from the Jaldapara National Park, were rescued on Monday night.
Senior foresters of the Jaldapara National Park said they had located a single-horned rhino, which had strayed away from the jungle, in Cooch Behar.
Forest department officers wait on the banks of the Torsha for the kunkis to arrive for the rescue
“The carcasses of the dead animals have started emerging on the banks after the water level of the Jaldhaka river began to recede. These animals may have been washed away either from the Jaldapara or the Gorumara forest,” a senior officer of the Gorumara National Park said. “We are awaiting post-mortem reports to ascertain the possible time when they died.”
An adult rhino is stuck on the bank of the Torsha river at Dhaloguri in Premerdanga gram panchayat, which is in the Mathabhanga subdivision of Cooch Behar district.
“The rhinoceros was swept away by the flood from the Jaldapara forest. The forest department has brought two captive elephants (kunkis) to the area to take the rhino back to the wild,” a forester said.
Bhaskar J.V, the chief conservator of forests, wildlife, north Bengal, said: “Five rhinos strayed out of the Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary. Of those, four have been brought back to the forest and one is still located beside the Torsha river in Cooch Behar. Two rhinos strayed out of the Gorumara National Park. One rhino has been brought back, while one remains outside the forest. One rhino and four gaurs have died at Gorumara, while one sambar has died in Jaldapara. This is the first such devastating flash flood that has caused havoc to wild animals in
north Bengal.”
Spread over close to 20,000 acres, the Gorumara National Park, located in the foothills of the Himalayas in Jalpaiguri district, hosts Asiatic elephants, Bengal tigers, bison, barking deer and various bird species, apart from single-horned rhinos.
The Jaldhaka river, which has been seething for the past few days, flows past the Gorumara park.
“On Monday, we rescued at least three spotted deer, a bison and its calf. They had all strayed out of the jungles. They were later released into the forests. Villagers have been informing us about animals that have strayed out of the wild,” the officer said.
“On Sunday, a herd of around 10 elephants and a calf had strayed out and were stranded on the banks of the Murti river. They were later rescued and rehabilitated. Our focus has been on wildlife protection and the safety of the villagers around
the forests.”
A team of senior foresters led by divisional forest officer Praveen Kaswan visited the Jaldapara National Park, which has been shut to tourists since Monday, to start a preliminary assessment of the extent of damage.
The national park, spread across 216sqkm in Alipurduar, attracts huge visitors for its flagship species, the one-horned rhinoceros. Elephants, bison, various species of deer and a diverse bird population make the park a prime location for wildlife viewing.
“Separate teams from 38 different beats have started moving inside the park and assessing the damage to grasslands and other forest areas. Three wooden bridges have been washed away and two severely damaged,”
Kaswan said.
The Jalpaiguri-based Society for Protecting Ophiofauna and Animal Rights (SPOAR) has joined the foresters in the rescue operation.
“Our job is to help forest officers rescue animals. The overenthusiasm of local people is a problem in such rescue operations as they gather beating drums and bursting crackers,” said SPOAR CEO Shyamaprasad Pandey.
Additional reporting by Anirban Choudhury in Alipurduar and Main Uddin Chisti in Cooch Behar