National Rhino Conservation Strategy

Launched by the Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) in 2019, National Rhino Conservation Strategy is a project to create the DNA profiles of rhinos in India and conserve the endangered greater one-horned rhinoceros. The National Rhino Conservation Strategy builds on the successes of rhino conservation programs and efforts so far and provides a strategic framework for the future. It’s an umbrella policy for the conservation of rhinos in India.

This article will give details about the National Rhino Conservation Strategy within the context of the IAS Exam.

The candidates can go through the relevant topics useful for their upcoming exams from the links provided below:

Biodiversity Conservation

International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)

United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

Project Elephant – List Of Elephant Reserves In India

World Rhino Day

List of National Parks in India

Great One-Horned Rhino

It is the only rhino found in India and is the largest rhino species. It has a single black horn and a grey-brown hide. It feeds on grass, leaves, shrubs, fruit, and aquatic plants. The species are confined to Indo-Nepal terai, northern West Bengal, and Assam habitats. Its habitats in Assam are in Kaziranga and Manas national parks. The Kaziranga national park has nearly 2500 great one-horned rhinos.

Read about Indian Rhinoceros in detail in the linked article.

Is the Great One-Horned Rhinoceros a Protected Species?

The tremendous one-horned rhino is rated “vulnerable” in the IUCN Red List and considered threatened with extinction in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). It is vulnerable for many reasons, including poaching for its horns, habitat loss, declining population density, and decreasing genetic diversity.

India, Bhutan, Nepal, Indonesia, and Malaysia have signed ‘The New Delhi Declaration on Asian Rhinos 2019’ to conserve and protect the great Indian one-horned rhino.

Rhinoceros Unicornis

The Indian rhinoceros, also called greater one-horned rhinoceros, or the great Indian rhinoceros, is of the species Rhinoceros Unicornis, native to the Indian subcontinent.

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Rhino Conservation Efforts

The government of India has relocated Indian rhinos as part of a strategy to conserve them. They have been taken out of crowded habitats and shifted to protected zones. The objective is to provide more room for the rhinos to breed and multiply.

What is Indian Rhino Vision 2020?

  • The Indian Rhino Vision (IRV) 2020 was launched in 2005 to help the greater one-horned rhino reach a wild population of at least 3000 rhinos.
  • Wildlife experts say it is an ambitious but attainable target.
  • The goal of Indian Rhino Vision 2020 is to reduce risks to India’s rhino population by ensuring that the animals are spread throughout multiple parks with enough habitat to encourage population growth.
  • The deadline to reach the target was 2020. Indian Rhino Vision 2020 was launched in 2005.
  • The IRV 2020 was a project of the Forest Department, Government of Assam, WWF India, and the International Rhino Foundation.

Read more about Indian Rhino Vision 2020 from the linked article.

Conclusion

The greater one-horned rhinoceros are found in India and Nepal. As part of the National Rhino Conservation Strategy, India and Nepal have a contract to protect the species. The Kaziranga National Park and the Manas National Park are home to the greater one-horned rhinoceros. Rhino conservation is a success associated with Manas National Park. Kaziranga National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

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Frequently Asked Questions on National Rhino Conservation Strategy

Q1

What is the WWF’s contribution to Indian rhino conservation?

The World Wide For Nature (WWF) is helping both India and Nepal conserve the greater one-horned rhinoceros in protected areas. It helps in ridding rhino habitats of poachers and restores dispersal corridors and creates more rhino populations via translocations.

Q2

Why are rhinos endangered in India?

Rhinos are endangered in India primarily because of human activity. Rhino numbers have reduced dramatically because of human incursions into rhino habitats. Hunting, poaching, habitat loss, illegal trade in rhino horns are other significant reasons why greater one-horn rhinos are endangered.

Q3

How many Rhinoceros are left in India?

Some reports say the Indian Rhino Vision target of raising the rhino population to at least 3000 by 2020 has been achieved, and the rhino population in India now numbers over 3000. Other reports refute these claims. One report said that the rhino population was 2600 in 2020. Yet, the Indian rhino revival is seen as a success story in rhino conservation.

Q4

How does translocation help rhinos?

There were objectives of translocation of rhinos. One of them was to attain a viable rhino population in Bardia National Park in Nepal’s terai. Two, establish a breeding population of rhinos in Suklaphanta Wildlife Reserve, which is also Nepal Terai. Efforts have been on to protect the rhino population in both these protected rhino areas.

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Daily Video Analysis – The Hindu Newspaper

All India Radio Spotlight for UPSC

NCERT Notes For UPSC

UPSC Mains GS-III Strategy, Structure & Syllabus

Topic-Wise GS 3 Questions for UPSC Mains

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