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Mumbai, Nov 18 (IANS) Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday directed that a proposal to declare the rising problem of leopard attacks on humans in the state a ‘state disaster’ should be tabled in the next cabinet meeting.
Also, a proposal to include leopards out of Schedule 1 of the Wildlife Protection Act and into Schedule 2 should be prepared and presented.
He also directed that cages should be immediately installed at necessary places to control leopards attacking people.
The Chief Minister also directed the concerned departments to start two rescue centers for the treatment and rehabilitation of leopards in Pune district in the next two to three months.
The Chief Minister chaired a meeting on Tuesday amid a rise in the number of deaths in leopard attacks, especially in Pune, Ahilyanagar and some districts of the Konkan region.
The Chief Minister said, “Leopards have been included in Schedule One. Therefore, there are limits on capturing and killing man-eating leopards. Therefore, a proposal should be sent to the Central Government to remove leopards from Schedule One. Permission for sterilization of leopards has been received from the Central Government. Therefore, man-eating leopards should be found and sterilized.”
Fadnavis said as leopard attacks have increased in the state, two time-bound measures should be taken to curb them: immediate and long-term.
He said, “As an immediate measure, leopards around villages and cities should be detected and caught. For this, the help of drones should be taken. Funds should be made available from the District Planning Committee for necessary materials like cages, vehicles and manpower to catch leopards.”
He further said that sterilization of leopards should be done in the long term. Also, a plan should be drawn up to immediately find a place to set up two rescue centers in Pune district to house the captured man-eating leopards.
He directed that the capacity of existing rescue centers at Gorewada and other places in Nagpur should be increased.
Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said it has also been decided that in districts where leopard attacks have been reported, schools will operate between 9.30 am and 4 pm for the safety of children.
–IANS
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