One more wildlife roadkill turned the National Highway-44 crimson on Wednesday night, when a leopard was run over by a vehicle on the stretch in Kamareddy district.
The sub-adult male of 1.5-to two years of age was found dead on the road in Kalwaral beat by passersby who informed the district Forest department officials between 10.30 p.m. and 11 p.m.
District Forest Officer B. Nikitha rushed to the spot along with her staff and confirmed the death of the animal.
“Based on the field level data, it was prima facie confirmed as roadkill, and not an instance of poaching. The leopard’s stomach came under a heavy vehicle, as apparent from the accident scene, and the blood-soaked tyre marks. Postmortem report too confirmed the same, and cited cardiac arrest as the reason for the death,” Ms. Nikitha informed.
The carcass of the animal was burned as per the norms, she said.
Frequent deaths of wild animals are reported on NH-44, the longest highway between the North India and South India, covering 12 states in its stretch.
Forest officials have been addressing letters to the National Highways authorities seeking effective enforcement of speed limits.
Though the speed limits have been set as 30 to 40 kmph along the stretch via Medak and Adilabad, they are hardly paid heed to by passing vehicles that zip past at speeds 100-120 kmph. The highway is covered on both sides by thick reserve forest, which makes it prone to frequent wildlife roadkills.
“Wild animals get paralysed for a moment or two when headlights of the vehicles hit their eyes while crossing the road. They stop abruptly and sit down, instead of running faster, becoming victims of accidents,” Ms. Nikitha said.
