In a tragic incident highlighting the escalating human-animal conflict in Gujarat, a one-year-old girl was brutally killed by a leopard that entered her home in Amreli district's Trambakpur village on Wednesday evening.
The Tragic Attack
The horrifying incident occurred around 6 PM when the toddler, daughter of farm laborer Arjun Ninama, was sitting beside her mother who was cooking dinner. According to an official statement from the Dalkhaniya Range of the state forest department, the leopard suddenly entered their home and dragged the child away before anyone could react.
The mother made desperate attempts to save her daughter, trying to shoo away the big cat and even hitting it with a utensil. However, her efforts proved futile against the powerful predator. The forest department later recovered the girl's body near the house, which is located approximately 3 kilometers from a wildlife sanctuary.
Series of Big Cat Attacks
This heartbreaking incident marks the third major big cat attack in the region within days, raising serious concerns about human-wildlife conflict in Gujarat.
On Tuesday, a five-year-old boy named Kanu Damor from a migrant labor family was killed by a lioness in Bagasara taluka of Amreli district. The victim's parents, originally from Dahod, were employed as laborers in the Hamapur Dhar area. The boy's partially eaten body was recovered some distance from the farm where the attack occurred.
Adding to the grim statistics, a two-year-old girl named Aadhya Makwana was dragged away and killed by a lioness while playing in the veranda of her house in Pichvi village, Kodinar taluka of Gir Somnath district on Wednesday.
Forest Department Response and Background
In response to the latest leopard attack, the Dalkhaniya Range has deployed seven cages in the area to trap the animal responsible for the toddler's death. The forest department is actively monitoring the situation to prevent further attacks.
The victim's father, Arjun Ninama, is a native of Madhya Pradesh who had been working as a farm laborer in Trambakpur village. The family's tragedy underscores the vulnerability of migrant workers living in areas bordering wildlife habitats.
The same day witnessed another attack when 34-year-old farmer Mukesh Solanki was mauled by a lion while watering his field near Gidardi village in Khambha taluka of Amreli, indicating a pattern of increasing confrontations between humans and big cats in the region.
