Nineteen rhinos have died in Chitwan National Park in the current fiscal year. Two of the dead rhinos are suspected to have been killed by poachers. Others have died over time.
According to Haribhadra Acharya, chief conservation officer of the park, six rhinos had died in June/July, two in August, one in September, three in October, five in November, and two in December. Among the dead rhinos are five due to old age, five due to getting stuck in swamps, two due to drowning, four due to fighting, and one due to a tiger attack. Similarly, a dead rhinoceros found in Madi's Ghaghar area on July 27 and a rhinoceros found in the Dhowa area on September 27 were suspected to have been killed by poachers, he said.
According to the office, 43 rhinos had died in the fiscal year 2019. At that time, a study team was formed to find out the cause of death of many rhinos. Similarly, 33 rhinos died in 2021, 26 in 2020, 26 in 2018, 25 in 2017, 14 in 2016, and 11 each in 2015 and 2014. Similarly, 10 rhinos died in the fiscal year 2013, according to the park statistics.
According to the latest census, out of 752 rhinos in Nepal, 694 are in Chitwan National Park. This park is considered to be the best in terms of rhino habitat. Recently, smugglers have started killing rhinos in the park which has been celebrating zero poaching year for some time. Due to a large number of rhinos, the number of deaths due to natural causes has been increasing in recent years. Experts say that the increase in the number of deaths due to natural causes should not be taken as unnatural.
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