PUNE: Fear and fury gripped Pimparkhed village in Shirur tehsil on Sunday afternoon after a 13-year-old boy was mauled to death by a leopard. It was the fourth such fatal attack in the village in five months.
The enraged villagers later set ablaze a patrolling vehicle of the Junnar forest division, accusing the forest department of inaction and lack of effective measures to curb the attacks.
The victim, Rohan Vilas Bombe, was playing in an open farm where his parents were working when the leopard sprang out of the sugar cane fields and pounced on him. The terrified parents raised an alarm, but by the time others reached the spot, the boy had sustained grievous injuries. He was taken to a nearby hospital but declared dead on arrival.
The tragedy has turned the spotlight again on the escalating human-wildlife conflict in Shirur and nearby areas, where frequent leopard sightings and attacks have struck fear. Moments after Sunday’s attack, hundreds of villagers gathered near the spot, shouting slogans against the forest department.
The situation turned violent when the mob torched a forest department’s patrolling vehicle. Additional police force had to be deployed to bring the situation under control. “The incident created a law and order issue. We have taken all measures in these villages in the last few months,” Smita Rajhans, assistant conservator of forests, Junnar division, told TOI .
She said they set up a base camp in Pimparkhed wheretheir staff and local volunteers were stationed to respond to emergency calls. “Despite capturing seven leopards, this tragedy took place,” Rajhans added.
Villagers said the forest department’s measures have failed to restore their safety. They allege that despite repeated representations to the authorities, there has been no concrete plan to manage the leopard population.
“Every morning, parents fear sending their children to school or even to the nearby fields. How long can we live in fear?” Kiran Gajare, a resident of Jambut village, said.
He added that their livestocks are killed frequently, children are under attack, and farmers have stopped going to their farms. “The department doesn’t have any strategy except trapping leopards. They must either sterilise these animals or allow us to protect ourselves,” he said.
In recent months, several village groups have demanded permission to kill leopards or use deterrents like noise guns and protective fencing on their farms. Some have even held road blockades demanding the state govt’s intervention.
Naresh Dhome, sarpanch of Pimparkhed village, said, "Our village has become a leopard habitat in five years. If the department has taken steps earlier, the situation would not have gone beyond control. Attacks have increased and there are daily sightings. We can’t return to normalcy,” he added.