LEopaRd moRTalITy oN RIsE, 21 moRE dIE IN maRch

NEW DELHI: At least 21 more leopards lost their lives in the first half of March, taking the toll to 127 this year, according to the Wildlife Protection Society of India (WPSI). The WPSI said the leopard deaths between March 1 and 15 reported from different parts of the country included a total 12 cases of “seizure and poaching”. Nine other cases were classified as “mortality”. Earlier, IANS reported that as many as 106 leopards died in the first two months of 2018 in forests across the country —a number that conservationists and officials said was “alarmingly high”.