Rhino goes on rampage in village as terrified locals throw rocks to deter animal

A rhino has left locals fearing for their lives as the huge animal went on a rampage in a residential area in broad daylight, with park rangers having to open fire on the beast to get it to clear off.

In a video taken by a witness, the animal can be seen entering an area close to Haldhibari village near the Kaziranga National Park in India's north eastern state of Assam.

In the clip, the rhino emerges from a river with terrified locals hurling stones at the animal to deter it from coming closer.

Others are seen screaming and shouting in a bid to scare the rhino away.

They are however unsuccessful as the rhino advances and runs into the villagers’ homes.

In the clip, the rhino emerges from a river with terrified locals hurling stones (Jam Press/Newslions)

The locals maintain a safe distance from the animal, clearly fearing its wrath.

Local authorities and personnel from the Assam’s forest department arrived at the scene to control the situation.

Some officials are seen sitting on top of elephants to get closer to the creature while others approach the animal on foot.

Officials then open fire at the creature, who quickly hides behind bushes and trees to avoid being shot.

It is not known if anyone was injured or the animal is alive.

The greater one-horned rhino is identified by a single black horn (Jam Press/Newslions)

Estimates place the number of Indian Rhino left in the wild in the country between 2600 and 3700. The greater one-horned rhino, or Indian rhino, is the largest of the rhino species.

The greater one-horned rhino is identified by a single black horn about 8-25 inches long and a grey-brown hide with skin folds, which gives it an armor-plated appearance, WWF state.

There were only around 200 Indian one-horned rhinoceros left when the Karizinga National Park was set up a century ago.

Officials made the animal flee by shooting at it (Jam Press/Newslions)

This is where David Attenborough's team came to film for Planet Earth II. William and Catherine, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, also visited in 2016.

The park has drawn criticism in the past because its rangers are allowed to shoot and kill suspected poachers, in what have been described as "extrajudicial executions".

At one stage the park rangers were killing an average of two people every month - more than 20 people a year, the BBC reported in 2017.