Esmond Bradley Martin at a hotel during his recent visit to Siliguri to study the wildlife sanctuaries in Jalpaiguri district. Picture by Diptendu Dutta

Time to learn a lesson or two from the keepers of horned pachyderms.

The staff at Gorumara and Jaldapara in Jalpaiguri district are set to show the world how rhinos in other lands should be conserved. Impressed with the no-poaching record of the two wildlife sanctuaries, the international community of wildlife lovers wants to replicate the Bengal model of conservation in other parts of the world to save the dwindling population of the endangered species. According to wildlife records, not a single rhino has been poached from the Gorumara sanctuary since 1992 and from Jaldapara since 1999.

Rhinos are poached for their horns, known for the mythical aphrodisiac properties. The export price of a horn of an Indian rhino is more than $ 10,000 per kg. In 1970, the world rhino population was over 70,000, while now, it is slightly more than 18,000.

In December, 2005, Esmond Bradely Martin, a Nairobi-based ecology consultant, associated with World Wildlife Fund, was here to study the Bengal model and prepare a similar one for countries, where the rhino tale is pathetic.

?A section of the international community wants to save the rhinos, but does not have the know-how,? Martin had told The Telegraph.

According to Martin, he has found some of the reasons behind the success story. ?The money spent by the government on these sanctuaries is the highest in the world. In Gorumara and Jaldapara, the expenditure is over $ 3,000 per sq km per year, while in Africa, which has the world?s highest rhino population, the amount is $ 10,? Martin said. ?The number of employees deployed is also significant. Here it is at least one person per sq km, which again is the highest in the world.? High staff morale is another important reason. ?The forest staff is more motivated and less corrupt than their counterparts in other rhino-populated places. The staff even have nicknames for some of the animals,? Martin said.

The relation the forest department shares with the local communities is also unique. ?Thanks to the community eco-development projects in the area, relations between the department and people here are very good, which has led to an excellent informal intelligence network,? Martin said. ?The network, along with the concentration of manpower in the two protected areas, has made the night patrol effective.?