Guwahati, July 28 (PTI): Exposing chinks in the security armour at Kaziranga yet again, poachers left a forest guard seriously injured in a shootout with security personnel during a poaching attempt at the national park yesterday.

An armed group of poachers shot at a rhino inside the sanctuary yesterday, Kaziranga divisional forest officer Utpal Bora said.

The forest guards, led by Bora, immediately gave chase.

In the encounter that followed, a forest protection force guard sustained a bullet injury in the neck, he said. The shootout continued till late evening, but the poachers managed to flee under cover of darkness.

The injured guard was rushed to Nagaon civil hospital and is reportedly out of danger, Bora said.

Following the incident, authorities at the national park have intensified patrolling to protect the endangered one-horned rhino, particularly in far-flung areas. The addition of more areas to the park has made it almost double the original size and consequently, more difficult to patrol.