On the World Rhino Day, a total of 2479 rhino horns have been burnt down at Bokakhat at a historic event in the presence of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. The religious ritual has been performed by 21 priests.
The initiative to burn the rhino horns has been taken to send a strong message and bust the myth that rhino horns are storehouse of medicinal properties.
After the ceremony, CM Sarma said that the government cannot be run by selling rhino horns. "The rhino horns have been burnt to disperse the misconceptions. There are no medicinal values in the rhino horns. It is our responsibility to keep alive the rhinos rather than to kill them. A living rhino is more valuable than a dead rhino," CM Sarma said.
He further stated that the government won't do any business with the parts of animals adding that if a rhino dies then its horns will be destroyed. "Rhino poaching has been decreased and I thanked the Forest officers and staffs. The rhino horns will be burnt every year," the chief minister said.
He also announced that the Kaziranga National Park will reopen from October 1. The other tourist places will also reopen from October 1.
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