Ramdas Athawale, a union minister of state and a wildlife enthusiast, adopted a five-year-old leopard on Tuesday in the Sanjay Gandhi National Park in this city.
The Minister’s son Jeet Athawale presented a check for Rs. 1.20 lakh to the SGNP’s Conservator of Forests & Director S. Mallikarjuna to complete the ‘adoption’ for the fifth time.
The leopard (Panthera Pardus), which was adopted under the SGNP’s Wild Animal Adoption Scheme, was handed to Athawale, President of the Republican Party of India (A), and his wife Seema.
“The Minister resembles a panther, the emblem of the Dalit Panthers organisations,” He loves the outdoors and animals, so this is his contribution to preserving both, according to a staff member.
Leopards are crucial to the balance of the food chain in nature and the general ecosystem of their habitats.
The leopard, who was given the name Simba, also celebrated his fifth birthday during the adoption ceremony by cutting a cake and reciting the Buddha Vandana.
A great diversity of flora and animals can be found in the 105 sq km SGNP in the Borivali East area, which spans the districts of Thane and Mumbai.
In addition to the renowned and thought to be 2000-year-old Kanheri Caves complex, these include animals, birds, butterflies, amphibians, snakes, over fifty leopards wandering in the wildness surrounded by the concrete jungle, a toy train, and lion and tiger safari.
