Two leopard cubs dead in road mishap

Mumbai: In a tragic incident, two leopard cubs were killed after being run over by an unidentified vehicle in Nashik district on Monday. The incident took place on the Dubere-Sonari Road in the district.

The state forest department also said that a female leopard suspected to be the cubs’ mother, along with another cub, sustained injuries, After locals in Sinnar tehsil spotted carcasses of the cubs, they alerted the forest officials and police. The authorities reportedly reached the spot within 30 minutes.

“The pair of cubs was six-month old. Locals told us that the injured female leopard and another cub ran away from the spot,” said the forest official. “Since the bodies were not decomposed severely, we have sent it for post-mortem,” he added.  The post-mortem is being carried out as Sinnar’s Mohadari Forest Office. Nashik police is investigating the matter to identify the culprits.

Meanwhile the forest officials have cautioned the local population about the female leopard. “If the female leopard was their mother, it could stroll the area or attack the residents in grief,” said the official.

As per a 2015 estimate, there are over 900 leopards in Maharashtra, second only to Madhya Pradesh.