Guwahati, Jan. 11: Army personnel and forest guards sealed a 15km stretch along the Rajiv Gandhi Orang National Park on the banks of the Brahmaputra early this morning to apprehend a group of poachers who are believed to be holed up inside the park.

The poachers shot dead a female rhino near Amulya anti-poaching camp, on the southern periphery of the park, late last evening. They took away the horn but failed to escape as they were accosted by a group of forest guards who zeroed in on the area after hearing gunshots.

“Our guards accosted a group of at least three poachers near the Amulya anti-poaching camp on the bank of the Brahmaputra. The poachers fired at the forest guards and there was a brief exchange of fire. The poachers, however, vanished under the thick cover of fog,” the divisional forest officer of the park, Sushil Daila, said.

The hornless rhino carcass was found this morning from near the Amulya anti-poaching camp, 2km from the Brahmaputra, during a search that began at daybreak.

This is the first rhino to have been killed by poachers inside the park this year. Last year, six rhinos were killed here.

Besides, two poachers were killed, 11 apprehended and several weapons recovered during this period.

Nearly 12 elephants were being used since this morning to scour the park in an effort to track down the poachers. “We are almost sure that the group of at least three poachers is still holed up inside the national park,” Daila said.

He said there were no footprints on the bank of the river to suggest that the poachers had escaped by river. “In this dry season, the river is very shallow in several parts and poachers can easily walk across to numerous chapories (sandbars) in the Brahmaputra. But we did not find any footprints and are, therefore, sure that the group is still holed up inside the park.”

Sources said the group of poachers had entered the park from the Lahori or the Horujan chapories in the Brahmaputra.

These two chapories are inhabited by suspected illegal migrants, who are allegedly involved in the trade of body parts of animals.

Daila said the army’s help had been sought to seal the 15km boundary, which the park shares with the Brahmaputra. “The poachers may try to sneak out as darkness descends but we are ready,” he added.

The incident comes barely a fortnight after a set of equipment to facilitate anti-poaching activities was handed over to the park authorities by the Wildlife Trust of India. The equipment include torches, first aid kits, solar lanterns and solar panels.

Daila said the need of the hour was to erect at least five tall towers from where forest guards could keep vigil. “We have given a proposal to set up at least 40-foot-tall guard towers.”

Situated on the northern bank of the Brahmaputra, Orang is home to about 60 rhinos and 15 tigers. There are 33 permanent anti-poaching camps within the park, each manned by four or five staff members.