Guwahati: Four suspected rhino poachers were arrested during a forest department operation in Teok, Jorhat district, forest minister Jayanta Mallabaruah said on Tuesday.Acting on intelligence inputs, forest officials apprehended the suspects in the Barluit forests of Hatishal. One of them was injured after being attacked by a rhinoceros during the operation, the minister said.The suspects are from different parts of Assam, including Gohpur, Narayanpur and Jajimukh, preliminary information revealed.In a statement, Mallabaruah said the operation reflected the govt’s commitment to protecting Assam’s one-horned rhinoceros. He urged communities near rhino habitats to share information with forest authorities and support conservation efforts.“Every rhino matters. Every life is worth protecting. The protection of Assam’s rhinos will always remain our top priority,” he said.The minister said Assam is home to around 3,260 greater one-horned rhinos, nearly 80% of the global population. Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve has more than 2,600 rhinos, accounting for around 70% of the world’s population.He said nearly 30 rhinos were killed annually by organised poaching networks during the mid-2010s. “In 2025, the state recorded no known rhino poaching cases. It was only the second time since the 1970s, after 2022, that Assam achieved zero known poaching,” he added.
