India Morning News
Pune — A major leopard rescue and hunt operation is underway in Pune’s Shirur taluka, where forest officials have successfully captured another leopard. In just 48 hours, one leopard was shot dead, while two others were trapped safely. The latest capture involves a female leopard, caught in Pimparkhed village after extensive search efforts.
Following the tragic death of 13-year-old Rohan Bombe, who was killed by a leopard in the same area, villagers demanded urgent action. The Forest Department responded by setting up around 30 cages across the region.
The government has also begun planning a relocation drive to shift leopards to forest zones in Gujarat’s Vantara and other areas to reduce man-animal conflicts. Forest Minister Ganesh Naik has initiated a proposal for this relocation. Reports indicate there are nearly 1,400 leopards across Shirur, Junnar, Ambegaon, and Khed talukas.
The leopard responsible for Rohan’s death was declared a man-eater. During a night operation, a team using drones and tranquilizer guns located the animal around 400 meters from the attack site. When the leopard attacked the team, shooters fired in self-defense, killing it.
Officials confirmed through footprints and DNA samples that it was the same leopard that had killed three people in a month — two children and one elderly woman. The other captured leopards are being shifted safely to a rescue center.
