The illegal wildlife crime has become the second largest illegal trade in the world after narcotics. The North East India in Eastern Himalaya harbours diverse threatened species of wildlife. As such the region has become the target of organized international wildlife traders to eliminate prized wildlife like the rhino, elephant, bear, tiger, leopard, musk deer, pangolin etc. The Wildlife Crime Monitoring Project based on intense investigation was initiated in small scale in 1998 with support from the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation of UK. Since then the project has been able to collect intelligence for data base for about 100 poachers with photographs. These databases have been made available to concerned law enforcing agencies to nab the poachers whenever needed. The project team work closely with the protected area managers and with concerned police offices and contribute more as facilitator to strengthen the networking and sharing of intelligence among the law enforcement agencies. The Wildlife Crime Monitoring Centre was a product of the Wildlife Crime Monitoring Project being in operation since 1998 with continued support received from the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation (www.davidshepherd.org) of United Kingdom. Setting up of such investigation unit was long felt due to unabated assault on threatened species of flora and fauna in North East India.

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Mother still struggling to survive in Kaziranga National Park after the horn bring cut by poachers while the calf (Middle) died due due to bullet injury and horn taken away. (Photo Credit: Uttam Saikia/WCMC)

On 19th January 2008, at about 11 PM, poachers shot two rhinos (see photo above) in just outside the boundary of Kaziranga National Park, behind Methoni Tea Estate. The calf died on the spot and horn taken away. The mother of the calf too received bullet injury and horn taken away by poachers, but still struggling to survive. The mother rhino too will die ultimately due to bullet wounds and excessive blood loss. How far this crime should be allowed to go? Let's come forward and do something. Let's assist the forest staff to strengthen their morale to fight against the poachers. Your support is vital. The forest staff in Kaziranga and other rhino bearing areas are capable of fighting. They need a support wall from all of us to save the rhinos and other species.

In Orang National Park, one rhino was poached and horn taken away by the poachers in January 2008.

In the year 2007, Orang Lost 3 rhinos due to poaching, Kaziranga lost 20 rhinos due to poaching of which 14 were within the Kaziranga National Park and 6 outside the national park. Fortunately, Pabitora Wildlife Sanctuary achieved no poaching of rhino in the year 2007.

Photo Gallery on Wildlife Crime:

Some of the recovery

Poachers even come with tranquilizing gun and accessories to kill rhino in Assam!!

Poachers arrested by enforcement agencies in Assam