India's Leopard Population Sees Rise, But Some Regions Face Decline; Details Inside

India has witnessed a rise in the estimated leopard population, increasing from 12,852 in 2018 to 13,874 in 2022, as per a report unveiled by Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav. However, the number of these rosetted felines has marginally declined in the Shivalik hills and the Indo-Gangetic Plains.

The report, titled The Status of Leopards in India, highlights that Madhya Pradesh boasts the highest number of leopards in the country, reaching 3,907, up from 3,421 in 2018. Other states such as Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu also witnessed growth in their respective leopard populations. In Maharashtra, the count increased from 1,690 in 2018 to 1,985 in 2022, while Karnataka saw a rise from 1,783 to 1,879, and Tamil Nadu reported an increase from 868 to 1,070 during the same period.

The Ministry stated that while Central India exhibited a stable or slightly increasing leopard population, rising from 8,071 in 2018 to 8,820 in 2022, the Shivalik hills and the Indo-Gangetic Plains witnessed a decline, dropping from 1,253 in 2018 to 1,109 in 2022.

If we look at the area which was sampled both in 2018 and 2022 across India, there is a 1.08 per cent per annum growth. In the Shivalik hills and the Gangetic plains, there is a 3.4 per cent decline per annum, while the largest growth rate was in central India and the Eastern Ghats of 1.5 per cent, it said.

According to the ministry, the tiger reserves or locations with the highest leopard population include Nagarjunasagar Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh, Panna, and Satpura in Madhya Pradesh. The fifth cycle of leopard population estimation in India in 2022 concentrated on forested habitats within 18 tiger states, spanning four major tiger conservation landscapes. However, non-forested habitats, arid regions, and the high Himalayas above 2,000 meters mean sea level, which represent approximately 30 percent of the area, were not included in this survey.

This included a foot survey spanning 6,41,449 km to estimate carnivore signs and prey abundance. Camera traps were strategically placed at 32,803 locations, resulting in 85,488 photo-captures of leopards. The findings underscore the critical role of protected areas in conserving leopard populations. While tiger reserves serve as important strongholds, addressing conservation gaps outside protected areas is equally vital, the ministry said.