Leopard found dead in Chamba

A leopard was found dead in the Masrund forest range of Himachal's Chamba district, officials said on Monday.

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The leopard was discovered by local villagers near a nallah in Dangaal Panchayat on Monday morning. They immediately informed the forest officials and the deceased animal was taken into custody.

"Investigations are ongoing, and the cause of death will be confirmed after the postmortem," said Forest Range Officer Jagjeet Chawala.

The mysterious death of the leopard has raised concerns, as poaching has been banned in the state for over four decades.

Local villagers noted that the Masrund forest range has been a target for forest mafias and medicinal herb extractors and now reports of illegal poaching are also emerging.