Think rhino protection, and you probably picture forest guards in khaki trekking through thick jungle, armed with binoculars and decades of field knowledge. But at Kaziranga National Park in Assam, the frontline of wildlife conservation now includes sleek, buzzing drones. These high-tech gadgets are no longer just tools for wedding photographers or surveillance teams, but they’ve become a critical part of guarding India’s largest population of one-horned rhinos.

Rhino poaching in Kaziranga National Park was once a grave concern, with over 190 rhinos killed between 2000 and 2021. The crisis peaked in 2013 and 2014 when 27 rhinos were poached each year. However, a determined crackdown by forest officials and the introduction of technology like drone surveillance have turned the tide. Since 2016, poaching incidents have declined by 86 percent.

Kaziranga isn’t just any park. It’s home to over 2,600 one-horned rhinos and attracts global attention for its conservation success. But with that success comes a constant threat, especially from poachers looking to cash in on the rhino horn trade. The vast terrain, thick vegetation, and seasonal floods make it nearly impossible for on-ground patrol teams to monitor every corner. That’s where drones come in.

How drones are changing the game

Drone surveillance in Kaziranga first took off around 2013 as an experimental project. The results were promising, (Park officials report a 40 percent drop in illegal hunting and unauthorised entry within drone-covered zones) and by 2017, the Central Government approved the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for regular........

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