Sumatran rhino is now extinct in Malaysia

News: The Sumatran rhino has become extinct in Malaysia following the death of its last captive individual. In 2015 they were declared extinct in the wild in Malaysia.

Facts:

About Sumatran Rhino

• The Sumatran rhino is the smallest and last form of the Two-horned hairy rhinos.
• Geographical Range: After it has become extinct in Malaysia, only four areas in Indonesia are known to contain Sumatran rhinoceros: Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park, Gunung Leuser National Park, and Way Kambas National Park on Sumatra; and on Indonesian Borneo west of Samarindah

Additional Information:

New Delhi Declaration on Asian Rhinos 2019

• Under the declaration India will collaborate with Bhutan, Nepal, Indonesia and Malaysia for conservation and protection of three Asian rhino species- 

Rhino Conservation in India:

• India is home to the Great Indian One horned Rhinoceros. There are about 2,600 rhinos in India, with more than 90% of the population concentrated in Assam’s Kaziranga National Park. Outside Kaziranga, rhinos are found in West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

National Rhino Conservation Strategy for India

•  It was launched by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in 2019.
• It focuses on:
  • strengthening protection,
  • expanding present distribution range by at least 5%, research on rhinos in India,
  • active Indo- Nepal and Indo- Bhutan trans-boundary engagement, and
  • Use of wildlife forensics for controlling poaching and illegal trade in rhino parts and products.

Indian Rhino Vision (IRV) 2020 programme

• It was launched in 2005 to protect and increase the population of the one-horned rhinoceros.
• The programme was launched by Assam Forest Department in partnership with WWF-India, the International Rhino Foundation and US Fish & Wildlife Service.
• It aims to attain a wild population of at least 3,000 greater one-horned rhinos spread over seven protected areas in Assam by the year 2020.