A one-horned rhino was found dead in a corn field at Gaidakot-7 in Nawalparasi district on Monday.  

There was a ruckus amongst the locals after they saw the rhino near the settlement. However, they realised that the pachyderm was dead as it did not react to the noises.

Senior veterinarian at the Chitwan National Park (CNP) Kamal Gaire, referring to a postmortem report, said the rhino died of electric shock. “The beast might have been electrocuted in the electric fencing installed by farmers to protect their crops from wild animals,” said Gaire, adding that the dead rhino was about 20-22 years old and pregnant. 

Assistant warden at the CNP Binaya Kumar Mishra, however, said there were no proofs of electric shock in the incident site and that the rhino might have died while it was devouring corn plants. “An investigation is on. We expect to learn about the exact reason of its death when a report will be released in a week,” he added. 

The important body parts, including horn and hoofs, were taken out in the presence of representatives of the District Forest Office, Nepal Army, Nepal Police and CNP. The carcass was later buried on the premises of the Sector Forest Office in Kawasoti.  

The death of the endangered rhino has alarmed the CNP, which has been celebrating zero rhino poaching years for the past two years. 

According to the CNP data, 14 rhinos died in the park area in the last fiscal year. Only one of them died of old age, while others died due to electric shock, forest fire, attacks by other beasts and poisoning.