On Monday, an Asiatic lion was killed near Goradka village in Amreli district after being allegedly run over by a vehicle on the Savarkundla-Mahuva state route.
In recent year, three lions have been killed in this area after being hit or ran over by goods trains.
A sub-adult male lion was discovered dead on the highway near Goradka hamlet in Savarkundla taluka, around 12 kilometers from Savarkundla taluka. “The form of the injuries imply it was run over by a huge vehicle, such as a container trailer or a truck, and killed on the spot,” said Atul Pandya, a businessman who witnessed the dead lion.
The forest department’s staff was gathering data of the occurrence, according to Nevil Chaudhary, assistant conservator of forests (ACF) of the Shetrunji wildlife division, which comprises portions of Amreli and Bhavnagar districts.
This year, at least four Asiatic lions have been killed on highways or railway tracks. A male lion was killed by a cargo train near Uchaiya hamlet in Rajula taluka of Amreli in February. Another was hit by a truck in the Pipavav port region of Rajula taluka in March. On a rainy night in August, a lion was run over by a cargo train in Khadkala village, Savarkundla taluka, when visibility was low.
The Gir and other protected regions in Amreli, Junagadh, Gir Somnath, and Bhavnagar districts are Asiatic lions’ only natural habitats in the world. Last year, their population was predicted to be 674.