Maharashtra lost 22 tigers in Jan-April 2025; 21 persons died in wild animal attacks

Mumbai, Jul 4 (PTI) As many as 21 persons lost their lives after being attacked by wild animals in Maharashtra between January and April 2025, while 22 tigers died due to different causes in forest areas of the state during the same period, the assembly was informed on Friday.

Also, 40 leopards died, three of them due to poaching, between January-April 2025 in Maharashtra, said the state government.

Providing a break-up, Forest Minister Ganesh Naik said in a written reply in the assembly that 13 tigers died due to natural causes, four due to electrocution, while four were killed in road and rail accidents and after falling into open wells. One tiger died due to unknown reasons.

In case of leopards, 20 died in road, rail accidents and after falling into open wells and eight due to natural causes. Three leopards died after being hunted down and nine due to unknown reasons, according to the reply.

Naik said 61 other wild animals also died during the same period.

Of these "23 wild animals died due to natural causes, four due to electric shocks and four were hunted down. Also, 24 wild animals died due to attacks by dogs and after falling into wells and six due to unknown reasons," the minister told the house.

During January-April 2025, 21 persons died after being attacked by wild animals, he said.

From January 2022 to December 2024, as many as 107 tiger deaths due to different reasons were reported in the state. A total of 707 wild animals died during the same period, Naik said in the reply. PTI