GUWAHATI, Oct 5 � The expertise of Forest Department personnel, veterinarians, and IAF helicopter pilots, along with favourable weather conditions will all have to come together to safely translocate the stranded rhino from a sandbar of the Brahmaputra.
The good news, according to well placed sources is, things are going as planned and with fair weather the meticulously planned operation will be set in motion. Today, a panel of experts observed the rhino and agreed that it was in a stable condition on the sandbar located not far from Sualkuchi. However, no date has been fixed for its transfer to higher ground.
Suresh Chand, Chief Wildlife Warden Assam, told The Assam Tribune that detailed preparations are being done to secure the rhino and move it to a Protected Area in the state. �It is a complex operation and would require collaboration among a number of departments� we cannot leave anything to chance considering the risks involved,� he said.
Before the animal can be shifted, it would have to be tranquilised. Then, it would be attached underneath a heavy lift helicopter that would carry its payload to a spot where it would be carefully offloaded.
