A forest official and a rhino measure each other during the census at the Pobitora wildlife sanctuary on Friday. (AFP)

Guwahati, May 8: Pobitora wildlife sanctuary — the park with the highest density of rhinos in the world — now has more of the animal with its population registering 84 in the rhino census held today.

Park officials started the count from 5am and the entire exercise ended by 8am.

“The figure cannot be less than 84,” Seal Sharma, divisional forest officer of Pobitora wildlife sanctuary, said.

Nearly 80 people participated in the rhino census at the wildlife sanctuary situated in Morigaon district. The 2006 rhino census had estimated the number of rhinos at 81 in an area of nearly 17 square km.

Of the 84 rhinos, 24 were males, 43 females and 17 were calves.

As part of the exercise, the entire park was divided into 14 blocks — seven within the park and seven outside it. The blocks outside the park were meant for the rhinos, which stray outside the sanctuary, which has been facing this problem. On an average, an area of 2 to 3square km was demarcated for counting the rhinos by direct sighting so that the job can be done easily.

Sharma said three rhinos were sighted outside the boundary of the park.

Chief wildlife warden of Assam forest department D.M. Singh said the number of calves indicate that the breeding has been good. “We are adding some areas where the rhinos used to stray and strengthening it by giving protection,” Singh said.

In 1987, the number of rhinos was 54, 56 in 1993, 68 in 1995, 74 in 1999 and 81 in 2006 in the wildlife sanctuary. After Kaziranga, the major source population of rhinos is in Pobitora and the best way to secure its populations is by translocating it to other areas.

The India Rhino Vision 2020 said rhinos in Pobitora have exceeded carrying capacity and numbers must be reduced to protect the habitat and mitigate the increasing rhino-human conflicts.

Two rhinos were translocated from Pobitora to Manas last year under the India Rhino Vision 2020. Intense cattle grazing in Pobitora has forced the rhinos to stray out of the wildlife sanctuary. On an average, about 20 to 30 rhinos stray during winter because of shortage of palatable fodder inside the park.

The straying out of rhinos to nearby unprotected areas has forced them to fall prey to poachers. A study carried out by Aaranyak, an NGO working for preservation and restoration of environment, had identified three major tracks through which rhinos stray out of the wildlife sanctuary.

These tracks are Kholabhuyan–Sildubi–Bonmuri–Murakata–Duboritoli/Hatimu-ria–Gagoldubi–Patekibori, Tamolidova–Kanjuli–Bhekenipathar–Hiloikhunda–Kurua and Kumarpur–Borbeela–Digaru. These tracks have been marked using the global positioning system (GPS).