Probe into Dabhoi leopard deaths begins

VADODARA: Three leopards including two cubs died within three days near a village in Dabhoi taluka of Vadodara district. The forest department has started an investigation into the incidents and is trying to ascertain the cause of their deaths.
The first dead leopard was spotted near Manpura village on Wednesday. It was a cub that was around six-month-old. An autopsy was conducted on the cub and its carcass was burnt by the forest officials following procedures.
But alarm bells were pressed when two other leopards an around 5year old female and a six-month-old male cub were spotted on Friday. The carcasses were lying in the ravines between Manpura and Rajpara villages.
“They were lying in deep ravines and even we had to make efforts to reach them. Autopsies have been conducted on these carcasses too and we are awaiting post mortem reports,” said Dahod range forest officer (RFO) C C Rohit.
Rohit added that prima facie there were no injury marks on the carcasses. He added that only a forensic report of the viscera of the animals could reveal the exact cause of death.
According to Rohit, most villagers that the department contacted after the deaths were themselves ruing the fact that the leopards had died. “They believe that the leopards made their farms safe from boars and other animals that damaged crops. No incidents of conflicts between the villagers and leopards have come to light so far. We are still speaking to them to try and ascertain what may have lead to the deaths,” said Rohit.