With the aim of gaining a scientific and holistic understanding of the leopard population, the Rajasthan Forest Department is set to conduct the state’s first-ever leopard census. This initiative will help the state government formulate a long-term conservation and management policy for leopards.
The decision follows the increasing number of leopards and their frequent movement into residential areas, leading to rising instances of human-wildlife conflict. The most notable case occurred in October 2024, when a leopard killed eight people in Udaipur over a span of 12 days and was later declared a man-eater.
The census is likely to be conducted between October and December, with technical support from the Wildlife Institute of India. It will cover protected areas and leopard habitats across the state.
“Preparatory meetings have been concluded, and training of field personnel will take place between August and September,” said a senior officer of the forest department.
According to the waterhole census, the leopard population has shown steady growth from 507 in 2017 to 925 in 2024.
Sources said that the issue of rising leopard numbers and their increasing movement in human habitations was raised with the National Board for Wildlife, which recommended a scientific and precise count to aid in framing a robust conservation policy. The upcoming count is expected to help the forest department manage the leopard population more effectively and mitigate human-wildlife conflict.
