India: floods inundate national park and kill six rhinos July 9, 2024

An Indian rhinoceros wades through floodwater in Assam state on June 20 (Biju BORO)

By AFP-Agence France Presse

India: floods inundate national park and kill six rhinos

Devastating floods in northeast India that have killed dozens of people have also inundated a national park, drowning six endangered rhinos and other wildlife, government officials said Tuesday.

The floods have begun to recede, the chief minister of Assam state, Himanta Biswa Sarma, said in a statement, noting that the "water level of the Brahmaputra and its tributaries is below the danger level at most places".

More than 1.8 million people have been affected in 3,000 villages, in addition to 72 deaths since mid-May, according to state disaster authorities.

The monsoon rains in South Asia from June to September offer a respite from the summer heat and are crucial for replenishing water supplies, but they also bring widespread death and destruction.

The intensity of the rains and floods has increased in recent years, and experts say climate change is exacerbating the problem.

As the waters recede, the impact of the deluge on wildlife is also being observed, including in Kaziranga National Park.

"The floods have affected both humans and animals," said Sarma, adding that police officers were "working around the clock to help everyone".

On Monday, Sarma posted a video on social media of a rhino calf stranded in water up to its chin, saying he had "instructed its immediate rescue".

Kaziranga is home to two-thirds of the world's remaining one-horned rhinos, classified as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List.

The park has 2,413 rhinos, according to a 2018 count.

Wildlife officials said six rhinos and many deer have been killed in recent days.

"Although there is higher ground to shelter the animals, they suffer when major floods affect the park," said a senior park official, who was not authorized to speak to the media, confirming the animals' deaths.

Kaziranga, a UNESCO world heritage site, is flooded almost every year, helping to replenish the park's water supplies and ecological balance.

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