(IN): Rhino horns stored in State treasuries decaying

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*http://www.assamtribune.com/scripts/details.asp?id=may0409/State9

 

Rhino horns stored in State treasuries decaying**

*Suryya Kumar Chetia

JORHAT, May 3 – Some horns of rhinos, which died from old age or were

killed by other animals, and collected by the Forest Department and

preserved in the treasuries, are now in a state of decomposition.

 

The Forest Department has kept all the horns at the treasuries located in

Golaghat, Nagaon and Sonitpur districts and some of these horns have been

reduced into powdery substances due to some organic reaction, SN Buragohain, of Kaziranga National Park, told *The Assam Tribune*. The organic

composition of the horns may lead to their degeneration over a period of

time if there is no proper preservation.

 

On an average, 100 rhinos die from natural causes every year in Kaziranga

National Park. Last year the number of such rhino deaths stood at 104. Out

of the dead rhinos, 75 per cent were full-grown bearing horns.

 

Forest Department personnel collected the horns from rhino carcasses and

sent these to the treasuries for storage under security arrangements.

 

A top Forest Department official, seeking anonymity, informed this

correspondent that there are more than 2,500 horns in the treasuries of the

three districts. Initially, these horns were kept at the treasury in

Golaghat district. But as the number of horns kept on increasing, these had

to be sent to the treasuries in Nagaon and Sonitpur districts.

 

The horns of the dead rhinos were sold legally during the late 1970s. But

the National Wildlife Board banned its marketing which, in the later stages,

encouraged poaching of rhinos.

 

According to experts as well as Forest Department personnel, the horn of a

rhino is a biological composition of dead cells without any value. From that

point of view, it can be said that the horns need not be stored in safety as

other precious jewels.

 

The horns preserved from the earliest times should be displayed in a museum

with proper care to attract tourists.

 

In the underground market, 1 kg of rhino horn is sold for a sum between Rs

30 lakh and Rs 40 lakh. The fetching of lucrative prices in the clandestine

international markets is the main motive behind the poaching of rhinos. From

that viewpoint, it is a valuable object which can earn good revenue for the

Government.

 

Sources stressed that the horns should, therefore, be not allowed to decay

in the treasuries.

 

The sources added that the actual number of decomposed horns should be

disclosed for public information and a register should be maintained so that

the object is not smuggled out of the treasuries taking advantage of the

fact of decomposition.

 

The sources maintained that the Government should pay attention to the

preservation of rhino horns which can form a good collection for display in

a museum at Kaziranga National Park.

 

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