Forest officials in Assam's Jorhat district arrested four suspected rhino poachers following an intelligence-driven raid in the Hatishal area of Teok subdivision bordering Kaziranga National Park.
Drama unfolded inside the dense riverine forest. A one-horned rhinoceros charged and injured one of the suspects during the encirclement, according to Jorhat police officials. Forest guards moved in moments later. The four men were apprehended before they could slip across the Brahmaputra channels.
Jorhat Forest Division officials launched the cordon in the Barluit forest after surveillance tracked movements near vulnerable wildlife corridors. The four arrested men hail from three separate pockets of the state—one from Gohpur, one from Narayanpur, and two from Jajimukh. Police records tied all four to organized poaching syndicates operating along Kaziranga's periphery.
The trap closed swiftly. Additional police teams from Teok and Lahdoigarh stations deployed to the perimeter to secure the suspects and comb adjoining riverine tracts for stashed gear.
Launched jointly in 2024 by the Assam Forest Department and Assam Police, Operation Falcon targeted poaching cartels stalking one-horned rhinos across Upper Assam. Hatishal and its surrounding floodplains have seen steady rhino movements in recent seasons, turning the zone into a recurring target for armed syndicates.
Prior to this sweep, the task force had arrested 48 poachers, intercepted nine major poaching attempts, and seized 15 firearms across two years. Those interdictions helped preserve zero poaching fatalities inside Kaziranga's core limits.
Jorhat police confirmed that interrogators are questioning the suspects to identify downstream handlers and weapon conduits, with formal remand proceedings scheduled before a local judicial magistrate.