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Kaziranga - A tale of two species

Conserving the endangered Asian Rhino

By Trotternama

April 26^th, 2020

I first read about Kaziranga in a storybook.

It was a story about a forest ranger, trying to stop a group of poachers smuggling one-horned rhinos from Kaziranga, across the borders of Assam into China. A gripping tale of action, romance, gunfights, jeep chases, and a ton of rhino's.

Legend has it that in ancient Chinese medicine, rhino horns were mixed with other natural ingredients for treating fever or relieving the symptoms of arthritis and gout. The list also included: headaches, hallucinations, high blood pressure, typhoid, snakebite, food poisoning and last but not the least - a cure for erectile dysfunction.

The truth is, because of their perceived medicinal value, rhinos have been poached and killed mercilessly for centuries now, only to be sold in the black markets of South Africa and Asia to wealthy Chinese and Vietnamese buyers. According to a BBC report, 100gm of rhino horn retails at about $6000 in the black market today, which kind of makes it more expensive than gold!

National Geographic did a fantastic piece on this topic a few years back. You can read it here.

Article and image from National Geographic, purely as reference to content shared. All right to this image belong to National Geographic - Article titled : Special Investigation: Inside the Deadly Rhino Horn Trade written by BRYAN CHRISTY

It is in this backdrop that the story of Kaziranga becomes inspiringly uplifting. Often dubbed as the "Serengeti of the East", Kaziranga only had 12 rhinos in 1905. By 2018 according to the rhino census, it had risen to 2413 and Kaziranga had become home to 70% of the world's Asian Rhino's – an incredible story of conservation and sustainability against massive challenges of illegal poaching, human encroachment and devastating floods on the Brahmaputra.

There is criticism as well. More on that later. But first, where on earth is Kaziranga, and what is it?

Kaziranga National Park is a national park in the Golaghat, Karbi Anglong and Nagaon districts of the state of Assam, India. The sanctuary, which hosts two-thirds of the world's great one-horned rhinoceroses, is a World Heritage Site. According to the census held in March 2018 which was jointly conducted by the Forest Department of the Government of Assam and some recognised wildlife NGOs, the rhino population in Kaziranga National Park is 2,413. It comprises 1,641 adult rhinos (642 males, 793 females, 206 unsexed); 387 sub-adults (116 males, 149 females, 122 unsexed); and 385 calves.

So now, back to my story.

Many years after reading the book, I had the opportunity to visit Kaziranga on a break during the Christmas and New Year holidays. It was the perfect time, given Kaziranga is only open for tourists between November and April.

I still remember standing in front of the Kohora entrance gate on NH 37 , tired from a trip that involved a plane, a train and a rickety bus ride, but excited to add Kaziranga to the list of national parks I had already been to in India, starting from Corbett, to Gir, to Ranthmabore and Bandipur.

Many years have passed, but what I experienced in that trip has remained with me. Kaziranga has also evolved , so when I started to write this story I decided to research some of its present context to make it relatable for now.

THE FORESTS OF KAZIRANGA

While Kaziranga is known for its conservation of rhinos, it has also got the highest density of Royal Bengal Tigers (21 tigers per 100 Sq-Km) anywhere in the world along with Asiatic Elephants, the elusive Eastern Swamp Deer (Barasingha), the Asiatic Water Buffalo and tons of migratory birds.

The interiors are unkempt and wild. Nature here is neither landscaped nor manicured. It's predominantly wet and messy. It's a complex, harsh wetland full of dangerous wildlife in their natural habitat. The foliage is a bit like the African wetlands, and animal spotting can be tricky given the tall cover of sugarcanes and high elephant grass where animals tend to camouflage well. Couple with it the possible presence of armed poachers – and the setting can be quite dramatic (though tourists have never actually encountered poachers on record)

Even with all that though, among all the National parks of India, Kaziranga is where I would say your chances of spotting a tiger, a rhino and elephants in the wild are the highest, given the sheer population density of these animals per square kilometre, within the protected area.

After a day you will lose the count of rhinos you would have seen in the wild.

THE FOUR ZONES

Kaziranga is broadly divided into four ranges

Kaziranga or Central Range: A 28-kilometre zone which covers, Mihimukh, Kathpora, Daflang, Diffalu, Monabeel and Kerasing
Agaratoli or Eastern Range: A 22-kilometre zone which includes, Agaratoli, Soholabeel, Rangamatia, Maklung, Turturani and Dhuba
Bagori or Western Range: A 26-kilometre zone which covers, Bagori, Dongabeel, Rowmari, Rajapukhuri, and Monabeel.
Ghorakati or Burapahar Range: A 17-kilometre zone which includes, Ghorakati, Potahibeel, Diffalu, and Tunikati

The routes are interesting because in each zone you come across anti-poaching camps that are spread throughout the sanctuary, with high observations towers from where rangers keep a constant vigil.

In the Central Range, these observation towers are at Daflang, Kathpora and Kerasing
In the Eastern Range, they are at Sohola
In the Western Range, they are at Donga
In the Burapahar Range, they are at Tunikati

The word "beel" in Assamese means a large water body. So Monabeel, Soholabeel, Dongabeel and Potahibeel are four large water bodies by which these towers are situated. These towers are interesting and strategic for forest rangers, while for tourists, they are the perfect vantage spot to catch sight of wild animals, as they come out to have a drink or take a swim.

JUNGLE SAFARI

The best way to do this is to maximise your time in each zone. Every day there are these options across all the ranges.

5.30 am – 7.30 am on elephant back
7.30 am – 9.30 am on a 4X4
2.00 pm – 3.30 pm on a 4X4
3.00 pm – 4.00 pm on elephant back

The Western Zone is your best bet for seeing rhinos since it has the highest rhino density while the Eastern Zone is the place to satisfy the budding ornithologist in you.

A suggested three day itinerary could be ;

Day 1: Central Zone

5.30 am – 7.30 am – Elephant ride
7.30 am – 9.30 am – 4x4 ride
2.00 pm – 3.30 pm – 4x4 ride

Day 2: Western Zone

5.30 am – 7.30 am – Elephant ride
7.30 am – 9.30 am – 4x4 ride
2.00 pm – 3.30 pm – 4x4 ride

Day 3: Eastern Zone

5.30 am – 7.30 am – Elephant ride
7.30 am – 9.30 am – 4x4 ride

Day 3: Burapahar Range

· 2.00 pm – 3.30 pm – 4x4 ride

EXPLORING KAZIRANGA

Exploring Kaziranga is an experience which is hard to describe in words, given its character.

You probably won't have to wait for long to see your first rhino. At least I saw one within the first thirty minutes. On elephant back, it is easier to spot them, and they don't seem to be bothered in the presence of elephants. The early morning fog and mist might make it difficult at times, but things can clear up pretty fast and then it is just about experiencing a surreal world which is far removed from the everyday lives we live in.

Over the course of your excursion, with a little bit of luck, you will probably encounter many rhino's. Rhinos playing, rhinos with their calves and rhinos swimming in the water. You will come across herds of wild elephants and massive asian buffaloes with enormous horns who stare at you with unflinching eyes. The banks of the river will be filled with spotted deer grazing in dozens and if you are lucky, you can even get the money shot of a Royal Bengal.

Once again mother fortune had been kind to me.

The Eastern Ranges are home to an incredible assortment of migratory birds, many of which fly all the way from Siberia to escape the bitter Siberian cold. In the Western Ranges, you have high changes of seeing vultures, leopards, barasingha's and wild boar.

For a tourist, Kaziranga has some of the best game viewing anywhere in India. The mahouts on the elephant rides and the rangers driving the 4X4s are seasoned pro's. They are skilled trackers and know the feeding routes. They know when and where a calf is born. They know which water holes are inhabited by animals. They know where there has been a tiger kill. They also relay animal sightings over walkie talkies so that tourists can be quickly taken to those locations.

All in all, from a Safari stand-point, Kaziranga should satisfy your wanderlust (there is always the off-chance that on a particular day the animals decide to stay in). But that is not what is unique about this place. What is unique, is the realisation of an incredibly delicate balance of life between man and beast, in one of the richest wetland bio-diversities of the world.

Kaziranga is not a one-act play.

THE CONSERVATION OF AN ECOLOGY

This is a story of people, their will, and of their environment. Of impoverished locals and under-equipped park rangers and a state forest machinery which absolutely needs tourism dollars to survive not just poachers, but the vagaries of nature as well, with the annual flooding of the Brahmaputra killing hundreds of animals in the reserve, every year.

The location or Kaziranga makes it incredibly delicate. Situated near the Brahmaputra it has about 180 villages with at least four tea gardens stretched across the length of the national park. Most of the villagers and tea garden workers live in extreme poverty, and over the years they have encroached continuously into the biosphere reserve in search of land and food, leading to an imbalance. Add to it the recurring floods, and animals have been forced to confront human beings, leading to deaths, thereby creating to a two-pronged enemy: poachers and scared villagers.

With a view to restoring that ecological balance, Kaziranga has expanded over the years with six new adjacent patches of land and upland refuges where animals can move to escape the annual flood. But with tourism being active only six months a year, it is hard for locals to have a sustainable source of income and for the park to get the constant infusion of funds it needs to support its wildlife habitat.

And yet what has been achieved, is beyond comprehension. Even with less equipped staff and modest income parity, the forest department and anti-poaching squads have achieved the near impossible in terms of rhino conservation. There is a collective will and a need to make it work, because the sanctuary is not just for the endangered rhino.

It is fundamental to the daily livelihood of the people who live by it.

Locals here have many stories. Stories of devastating floods, of animals brutally killed by poachers, of rhinos and elephants giving birth to their off-springs and of hardships to make ends meet. But nowhere will you encounter negative behaviour. In their eyes, there is humility and calm acceptance that this is their life.

Times have changed and the tide of poaching has turned a corner in Kaziranga. A few years ago, in a desperate bid to quell the rampant rise in rhino deaths, the government gave shoot-at-sight orders for park rangers to combat poachers. While the decision has been controversial, it has brought down poaching significantly.

However, this has also led to collateral damage leading to underlying resentment. Innocent villagers mistaken as poachers have been killed, causing local civil unrest.

While saving the rhino is important, trigger happy forest rangers taking innocent lives is not a feasible solution to scale conservation. A few years ago the BBC did an article on this topic. You can find it here.

That, in a nutshell, is the diversity of Kaziranga. A delicate sanctuary dedicated to saving endangered species surrounded by a local population, who are both intricately connected to the land they live in and share.

For the guides, rangers and mahouts, tourists are just a welcome economic necessity who come seeking a sense of adventure and a thirst for wanderlust, only to take a few pictures which mostly end up on Facebook posts that eventually get buried amidst congratulatory likes and shares. (yes the villagers know about Facebook).

They know that the two worlds don't collide. They know we (the tourists) don't belong. They know we (the tourists) have no idea what Kaziranga is.

And truly, most of us don't, beyond pictures on instagram.

THE CONSERVATION OF THE RHINO

In the anti-poaching camps of Tunikati, Daflang, Kathpora and Kerasing there are observation towers where most of the Safari's have scheduled stops. These are good vantage locations for animal sighting. Standing there though, looking at the vast expanse of this biodiverse ecology, it begs a simple question. How challenging is it, to patrol an area as vast as this from these towers in the monsoon of Assam where it rains constantly for six months ? Where everything becomes wet, and the floodwaters rise, and poisonous snakes are everywhere on the forest floor. Where hunger and cold in dark nights with wet clothes would make it near impossible to see anything, forget apprehending poachers.

Even today, every year, poachers infiltrate the national park and kill animals and sometimes guards as well. While the government has approved shoot-at-sight orders for poachers, it is difficult to fathom how forest rangers with their .315 bore rifles and service revolvers can muster the capability to take on poachers with AK47s and keep the rhino alive in the darkness of the night.

Even in broad daylight, the entire forest feels chillingly eerie and silent. But that is the story of Kaziranga.

It is a remarkable tale of ecological conservation where rhinos have been successfully bred in their natural habitat for the last 100 years while staving off the challenges of poaching, flooding, mass education and loss of habitat due to human-animal conflict. Nearly 2000 rhinos have born over the last 40 years, while the number of deaths from poaching have come down from 50 a year to below 10.

It is a remarkable testament to active animal conservation. Kaziranga has 199 anti-poaching camps spread throughout its entire acreage of 430 Sq Km, with 2 of them being amphibian units. The amphibian units which float on the mighty Brahmaputra, have 123 country boats, six mechanised boats and four speed boats, while a total of 800 park rangers patrol the park round the clock.

Even technology has come to the fore. Telemetry and camera traps are common today with infra-red sensors to catch sight of movement in the under-bush, and as of last year, the government has approved drones to be used for park surveillance.

By the time the bags are packed, the safari's are over and the sun has set, Kaziranga drives home the realisation that if we truly want to achieve something we can. Even against impossible odds. The Indian government, forest services, state government of Assam and Indian Army deserve enormous accolades for what is today the biggest success story in the history of rhino conservation anywhere in the world.

They also need to be held accountable and find a better solution to innocent people losing their lives from the rifles of rangers.

Kaziranga lives. And so does its legacy. For the Asian rhino, it is a beacon of hope. For the locals it is their livelihood. For tourists like me, it is some pictures on Facebook.