Leopard sightings have increased along roads, farmland and settlements in Pune’s Sinhagad-Panshet and Rajgad-Torna areas, prompting the forest department to appeal for caution and restrict access to Sinhagad’s forest zones from 6 pm to 6 am. A female leopard was also captured in a cage in Warulwadi in Junnar taluka and moved to the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre.
The latest reported sighting took place on Saturday evening near Jagtap Machi on the Sinhagad Ghat-Doneje route. Ganesh Matale and Tushar Bhame were travelling by car from Khed Shivapur towards Gorhe Khurd at about 7 pm when a large male leopard stood in the middle of the road. The animal did not move even after the car stopped.
The two occupants kept the car windows closed and switched on the headlights. The leopard then moved to a stone roadside parapet, where Matale photographed it before the car continued towards its destination. The incident highlights the risks faced by motorists using forest-edge roads after dark, particularly on routes connecting tourist and rural settlements around Sinhagad.
A similar sighting was reported near Pole village in the Panshet dam valley. A state transport bus travelling on the Pune-Panshet route towards Tekpole encountered a leopard on the road at about 7.30 pm. Passengers shouted, after which the animal fled into the forest.
The forest department has said that leopards inhabit the forest areas around Sinhagad Fort and are commonly seen after evening in locations including Talai Forest Park and Jagtap Machi. Vaishali Hadawale, forest range officer of the Sinhagad forest division, said tourists and residents are prohibited from entering Sinhagad Fort and the surrounding forest areas between 6 pm and 6 am.
The department’s warning comes as movement has also been reported near agricultural land and residential areas. The source report said residents in the Sinhagad-Panshet, Rajgad and Torna regions have expressed fear over the animals’ presence on main roads and in inhabited areas. The report did not provide a population estimate or identify a specific cause for the reported increase in sightings.
In a separate incident, a female leopard estimated to be between one and one-and-a-half years old was captured early on Sunday in a cage installed by the forest department at Prashant Warule’s grape orchard in the Chimnawadi area of Warulwadi. The cage had been placed on September 18 after repeated visits by the leopard around it without entering.
Local residents, disaster-response volunteer Sushant Bhujbal, forest guard Dnyaneshwar Pawar, Atul Kanade and Sandeep Warule, along with rescue team members, assisted in the operation. The leopard was subsequently taken to the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre.
Residents have also sought further action in nearby areas. The report said two leopards continue to be seen around Waluwadi, while cages placed at Belota Mala in Gujarwadi and Hingemala in Savargaon have not yet captured the animals. The cage at Belota Mala had reportedly been in place for eight days and the one at Hingemala for 15 days. Residents have asked the forest department to adopt more effective measures to capture or manage the animals. The department’s immediate public guidance remains the restriction on night-time access to the Sinhagad forest areas and caution for people travelling through leopard-prone routes.
