Stray rhino creates menace in Uttar Pradesh

A rhinoceros, probably from Nepal, has sought cover in the sprawling sugarcane fields of Rampur in Uttar Pradesh, striking terror.

Experts called from the Kaziranga rhinoceros sanctuary in Assam have failed to capture the animal hiding in Rampur for the last three months. The authorities intensified their efforts to capture the animal after it killed a man in the Lakhimpur-Kheri district in October.

Uttar Pradesh chief wildlife conservator Mohammad Ehsan said: "The animal strayed into India through the thick forest cover along the Nepal border in October."

It was first spotted in the forests of Bahraich district, bordering Nepal, before it shifted to Lakhimpur-Kheri.

Experts from Kaziranga tranquillised the rhinoceros.

"But before it could be transported into a cage and across the border, it succeeded in breaking its shackles and pushing further into the mainland here," Ehsan said.

While wildlife officials are keeping track of the animal, they have avoided another tranquillisation because a gap of three months is considered necessary between two rounds.

"An overdose could be harmful. Now that it has been more than two and a half months, we can immobilise the animal soon," Ehsan said.