GANDHINAGAR: As many as 67 persons were killed in leopard attacks in Gujarat in five years, the state government informed the Legislative Assembly on Saturday.
To control leopards' population, the state has sought the Centre's permission for sterilising the animals, Forest Minister Ganpat Vasava said in a written reply.
Responding to a question by Congress MLA Bhagwan Barad, Vasava said leopards attacked 718 persons in different parts of the state between 2015 and 2019.
As many as 67 of these victims died, he said.
The maximum number of attacks were recorded in Amreli, Junagadh, Gir-Somnath and Dahod districts.
Of 67 fatalities, 55 were from these four districts.
A compensation of Rs 4 lakh is paid to the kin of the deceased, Vasava informed.
To another question, the minister said in his written reply that the state government sought permission from the Centre in 2019 to sterilise the leopards to control their population, but it was yet to receive a nod.
There were 1,395 leopards in Gujarat as per the 2016 census.