The rhinos translocation from the CNP to BNP has started from Tuesday.
Local conservationists on Tuesday submitted a memorandum to the CNP head office, demanding immediate halt to the translocation process. Earlier, they had also submitted a memorandum to the district administration office (DAO), Chitwan.
Locals in Sauraha have also launched protest to stop the relocation process of rhinos from the CNP, Basu Bidari, one of conservationists, informed.
Chairman of the CNP's buffer zone management committee Madhukar Malla has also joined the protest against ongoing translocation.
Earlier, Malla opposed the translocation at a meeting organized by the CNP.
Based on the ongoing translocation of five CNP rhinos to BNP, authorities will be able to decide about future translocations to BNP, according to joint secretary Maheshwar Dhakal at the Ministry of Forests. Dhakal is also deputy director general at the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC).
"Poor security at BNP still is a matter of concern. So, a study on rhino habitat at BNP needs to be carried out," he said.
CNP's Chief Conservation Officer Ram Chandra Kandel said that fodder and habitat for the rhinos may not be adequate at the BNP. "There is a need for a research on the issue," he added.
Rhino specialist at World Wildlife Fund (WWF) for Nature-Nepal Shantaraj Gyawali expects to the impact of the current translocations within a year.
The current translocations are being conducted at the cost of Rs 8 million under the Hariyo Ban Project implemented in financial support from WWF and USAID.
The decision to move the rhinos was made last year. However, there was delay in implementing the decision due to change in leadership at the (DNPWC) and the CNP itself.
Earlier, a total of 83 CNP rhinos had been translocated to BNP on different dates. But only 29 of them remain at BNP.
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