PUNE: Two five-month-old leopard cubs were rescued from a 15 foot deep well after a two-hour rescue operation by Wildlife SOS, Otur Forest Department, on Thursday, in Gatwadi village of Otur. According to information given by officials of Wildlife SOS, the two cubs were found trapped inside a 15 foot deep well in Gatwadi village in Otur.

They were trapped for ten hours and were discovered by a local farmer on Thursday afternoon. The incident was reported to the Forest Department and Regional Forest Officer (Otur) Sachin Raghatwan, who immediately alerted the Wildlife SOS team at the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Center in Junnar.

The forest department team and Wildlife SOS rushed to the location and started the rescue mission. The cubs had managed to clamber onto an elevated edge to avoid drowning in the water. After carefully extricating them one after the other, the pair was transferred to a transit facility. 

The cubs, one male and one female, were estimated to be about five months old. Wildlife SOS veterinarian Dr Ajay Deskmukh carried out a routine veterinary check-up and the cubs were kept under observation till dusk. “The cubs were extremely stressed and exhausted from the ordeal. Female leopards are fiercely protective of their young ones and can retaliate with aggression if they are unable to locate their cubs,” added Deshmukh. The cubs were later united with their mother.  Kartick Satyanarayan, Co-founder and CEO Wildlife SOS, said, “It is a matter of great concern for us as wild animals such as leopards continue to become unnecessary victims of uncovered wells.”

Range Forest Officer (Otur) Sachin Raghatwan said, “Otur is a leopard inhabited area and we work closely with Wildlife SOS to tackle such incidents.”