Twenty-eight goats and sheep were mauled to death by a snow leopard in Himachal Pradesh's Rongya village early today, a forest official said.
The incident took place in the Lahaul area of the state, which borders the Leh region of Jammu and Kashmir.
The snow leopard entered a shed early this morning and killed 28 goats and sheep belonging to a farmer Sonam, the official said.
The big cat was spotted returning to a forest by a former panchayat member, Karma Tashi, he said
Forest Guard Sunil Kumar, who visited the village, said a compensation of Rs 1,500 for each livestock killed would be given to the affected farmer and the case would be sent to the forest department.
The snow leopard population is on the decline worldwide, but in the past few years, their numbers have increased in Himachal Pradesh.
High-altitude tribal areas of Lahaul and Spiti and Chamba are natural habitats of the endangered animal.
There are 25 to 30 leopards in the Kibber Wildlife Sanctuary and the animal has been spotted in tribal areas of Chamba district.
The snow leopard is thestate animal of Himachal Pradesh and is listed as vulnerable on the International Union For Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of threatened species.
The global population was estimated at 4,500 to 8,745 mature individuals as of 2016, sources in wild life department said.
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