Forest officials rescued a 7-year-old leopard that had fallen into a 50-feet-deep well in the west-central Indian state of Maharashtra on Monday.

According to local media, residents of the Pimpalgaon Rotha village heard panicked roars echoing from deep within the open well at around 9 am. Seeing that the leopard was drowning in the waist-deep water, they alerted officials who turned to a wildlife SOS team for help.

While waiting for the team to arrive, officials first lowered a platform into the well so that the terrified leopard could clamber onto the makeshift platform for temporary support. Later, the wildlife SOS team drifted a trap cage in the well with the open door angled towards the leopard. The animal jumped into the cage and was quickly lifted out of the well.

Dr. Ajay Deshmukh, Senior Veterinarian at the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre said after a thorough physical examination that the leopard was healthy and fit for release.

An approx. 7-year-old female leopard escaped a narrow brush with death after falling into a 50-foot-deep well in Pimpalgaon Rotha village in Parner range, Maharashtra. The animal was rescued by Wildlife SOS & the Forest Department and after mandatory observation, has been released back into the wild.
In an unexpected turn of events, an adult leopardess found itself on the verge of drowning in a 50-foot-deep open well in Pimpalgaon village on Monday. At around 9:00 am, residents of the village were startled by the panicked roars, echoing from deep within the open well. Fearing that the leopard may not survive much longer in the waist deep water, the villagers immediately alerted the forest department who in turn called  Wildlife SOS team that manages the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Center in Junnar.
A four-people team was immediately dispatched to the location. While the Wildlife SOS team drove nearly 80 kilometres to reach the location, a team of forest officers rushed to the village to assess the situation. With the help of the villagers, they lowered a platform into the well so that the terrified leopard could clamber onto the makeshift platform for temporary support.
Once the Wildlife SOS team arrived at the scene, a trap cage was lowered into the well, it’s open door angled towards the leopard. Almost grateful for a dry spot to move onto, the leopard jumped into the cage and was quickly lifted out of the well. Meanwhile, the Forest Department managed the huge crowd of curious onlookers, to prevent any unnecessary panic or resultant mishaps.
Dr. Ajay Deshmukh, Senior Veterinarian at the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre said, ““The leopard was in a state of panic and had to be rescued immediately. The team first lowered a platform into the well to give the leopard a chance to clamber out of the water and onto a safe space before lowering a trapping cage in and successfully lifting it out of the well. The leopard is a seven-year-old female and after conducting a through physical examination we concluded that it was healthy and fit for release.”