India, March 7 -- The Maharashtra forest department has signed an agreement with Vantara for the relocation of 50 leopards from the state, forest minister Ganesh Naik announced via a social media post on Thursday. According to forest officials, the leopards will be shifted from the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre in Junnar.

The decision to relocate the animals was first announced in November 2025 amid rising incidents of human-leopard conflict in the Junnar region of Pune district. Following the announcement, a team from the Jamnagar-based Vantara facility conducted a ground inspection of the rescue centre to assess the feasibility of relocating the animals.

Officials subsequently submitted the proposal for shifting the leopards to the C...