Zero Rhinos Killed Here, for the First Time in 45 Years

For the first time in almost half of a century, 2022 saw an entire year go by with no rhino poaching in India’s northeastern state of Assam.

Sincere and coordinated efforts are to thank for zero poaching, officials say. “Watch towers with CCTV cameras were erected at specific locations and armed commandos from police and forest department were equipped with sophisticated arms, wireless sets, drones, and night vision cameras,” explains special director general of police G P Singh.

Rhinos are classified as endangered in Schedule 1 of the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972. There is also an international ban on the trade of rhino horns under the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna. India’s Assam state is home to the world’s largest population of one-horned rhinos, standing at 2,895 individuals.