Assam Floods: 137 Wild Animals, Including Six Rhinos, Perish in Kaziranga National Park

The devastating floods in Assam have led to the deaths of 137 wild animals, including six rhinos, at Kaziranga National Park, officials reported.

Despite the tragedy, park authorities have successfully rescued 99 animals, including two rhino calves and two elephant calves.

Sonali Ghosh, the field director of Kaziranga National Park, provided details on the casualties, stating that 104 hog deer, six rhinos, and two sambar deer drowned in the floodwaters. Additionally, two hog deer were hit by vehicles, one otter pup died due to other reasons, and 22 animals died under care.

“So far, we have rescued 99 animals, including two rhinos, two elephants, 84 hog deer, three swamp deer, and two sambar deer,” Sonali Ghosh said.

The flood has inundated 70 of the 233 forest camps in the park. The situation in Assam remains dire, with six more people dying on Monday, bringing the total death toll to 72 as of July 8, 2024. Over 2.774 million people across 28 districts are still affected by the floods.

The affected districts include Goalpara, Nagaon, Nalbari, Kamrup, Morigaon, Dibrugarh, Sonitpur, Lakhimpur, South Salmara, Dhubri, Jorhat, Charaideo, Hojai, Karimganj, Sivasagar, Bongaigaon, Barpeta, Dhemaji, Hailakandi, Golaghat, Darrang, Biswanath, Cachar, Kamrup (M), Tinsukia, Karbi Anglong, Chirang, Karbi Anglong West, and Majuli.

Rescue teams from the NDRF, SDRF, Fire & Emergency Services, local administration, Indian Army, and paramilitary forces are actively engaged in rescue operations throughout the state.

The severe flooding in Assam over the past month has resulted in significant loss of life, extensive damage to infrastructure, road closures, crop destruction, and livestock loss. The deluge has also left hundreds of people homeless and displaced.