Chiplun leopard found dead near river
MUMBAI : A male leopard that attacked four people and sustained injuries in Chiplun, Ratnagiri on Tuesday was found dead on Sunday evening.
The forest department said the leopard’s carcass was found next to a river near Waloti and Gane villages.
“Local residents of the village informed us after they found the body. It seems the leopard did not recover from injuries and died on either on Saturday night or early Sunday morning. A post-mortem will be carried out and the body will be burnt,” said VK Surve, divisional forest officer, Ratnagiri.
HT reported on Saturday that the injured sub-adult leopard had brought the focus on the escalating issue of wildlife habitat destruction and human-animal conflict for the first time in this region.
On Tuesday, a person suffered serious injuries and rushed to a civil hospital, while three others escaped with minor wounds at location between Gane and Khadpoli villages in Chiplun in an area under the jurisdiction of the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC). A rescue team from Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) tried to locate the leopard from Tuesday to Friday but failed.
Animal welfare groups from the area that shared images with HT of the leopard’s carcass said the body was bloated and had begun rotting. “From the way decomposition had started it seems that the leopard died at least 24 hours to 36 hours before we found the carcass. There were no serious injuries on the carcass. It is extremely sad that we could not provide any help to the animal,” said Sonal Prabhulkara, president, Sahyadri Conservation and Research organisation that conducted awareness sessions in the area post Tuesday’s incident. “There was better crowd management on Sunday.”
Other residents said the construction of a stone quarry, new industries, a state highway, and large scale deforestation had disturbed the leopard habitat.