4 Suspected Rhino Poachers Arrested In Assam's Jorhat

Jorhat: In a major success against rhino poaching in Assam, four suspected rhino poachers were arrested in Assam's Jorhat district following a special operation conducted by the Jorhat Forest Division in the Hatishal area of the Teok subdivision of Jorhat.According to Jorhat police sources, one of the arrested suspects sustained injuries after being attacked by a rhinoceros during the operation in and around Kaziranga National Park.The quick action which was part of the ongoing operation Falcon to keep poachers away from the vicinity of Kaziranga National Park, acting on specific intelligence inputs, forest officials launched a search operation in the dense forests of Barluit and apprehended the four suspects, sources added.The arrested men are reportedly from different parts of Assam. While one hails from Gohpur and another from Narayanpur, the remaining two are residents of Jajimukh, police sources add, saying that there was specific intelligence about all four of them and their involvement in Rhino poaching.Personnel from Teok and Lahdoigarh police stations have also reached the spot, and further operations are underway in the area.The Hatishal area and its adjoining regions have witnessed the movement of several one-horned rhinoceroses in recent years, making the area significant from a wildlife conservation.Operation Falcon is a joint anti-poaching and wildlife conservation campaign launched in Assam by the Assam Police and the Assam Forest Department, it has helped in achieving zero rhino poaching in Kaziranga.Launched in 2024, the ongoing operation Falcon has, till this fresh arrest, earlier led to arrests of 48 hardcore poachers, nine major rhino poaching attempts, and 15 firearms recovered in the past 2 years.