Due to suspected infection, four lion cubs in Gujarat's Gir forest region has died, prompting authorities to isolate 17 adult lions and intensify health surveillance across the Asiatic lion habitat.
Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Wednesday convened a high-level meeting in Gandhinagar to review the situation as forest officials moved to contain any potential spread of disease in the Gir landscape.
Officials said the cub deaths occurred in different pockets of the Gir forest region, while veterinary teams have begun close monitoring of lions in vulnerable zones.
“Four lion cubs have died in different areas of the Gir forest region, and 17 (adult) lions are being isolated and taken care of,” an official release stated, citing details shared by Principal Secretary (Forest and Environment) Vinod Rao with the chief minister.
According to Rao, lions within a 10-km radius of the Gir Gadhada and Babaria areas are under intensive observation, though no fresh symptoms have been detected among them.
"All the lions in the Mahsuli area of Amreli and Bhavnagar districts are also being monitored intensively by the Forest Department, and daily reports are being received.
"As part of the safety measures against such seasonal diseases seen at the beginning of summer, the de-ticking and other health measures are being taken for more than 350 lions in the Gir area," the release said.
Specialist veterinarians from Junagadh Veterinary College have joined the ongoing operation, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Jaipal Singh said.
The development comes a day after Forest Minister Arjun Modhwadia said two lion cubs had died due to suspected Babesia virus infection, a tick-borne disease that can trigger weakness, coughing and nasal discharge in animals.
Three other lions, he said, died in unrelated incidents involving natural causes and infighting.
Modhwadia, however, dismissed fears of a large-scale outbreak in Gir, the world’s last natural home of the Asiatic lion.
The latest deaths have renewed memories of the 2018 episode in Gujarat, when 11 lions died within a month due to a combination of canine distemper virus and protozoal infection.
The 2025 lion census pegged Gujarat’s Asiatic lion population at 891.
(With inputs from PTI)