Pune: 11-Month-Old Boy Killed in Suspected Leopard Attack in Daund’s Dahitane Village

Daund, 2nd May 2025: In a tragic incident that has stunned the residents of Dahitane village in Daund taluka, an 11-month-old boy was dragged away and suspected to have been killed by a leopard in the early hours of Wednesday, 30 April. The child, identified as Anvit Dhula Bhise, was sleeping beside his mother when the leopard is believed to have attacked around 5 am.

After a 31-hour-long search operation involving forest officials, local rescue teams, sniffer dogs, and villagers, the child’s partially decomposed remains were recovered around 1 pm on Thursday, 1 May. The remains were found in a sugarcane field roughly 500 feet from a nearby sheep shelter. Blood-stained clothes, part of the baby’s skull, and his anklet were discovered at the site.

Anvit’s family had recently relocated to Dahitane from Mankobawada in Yavat. On the morning of the incident, his mother had fed him and laid him back to sleep beside her in the sheep shelter where they were temporarily staying. According to preliminary information, when she stepped away briefly to cook at a nearby tent, a leopard hiding near the edge of the sugarcane field is believed to have pounced and taken the baby. Despite frantic cries and efforts by the parents, the leopard disappeared into the fields with the child.

The dense sugarcane crops and soaring temperatures complicated the search, but coordinated efforts eventually led to the grim discovery.
Following the incident, forest authorities have deployed cages and installed trap cameras in the area in an attempt to capture the leopard.

“Once the postmortem report is received, financial assistance will be provided to the Bhise family,” said Forest Range Officer Rahul Kale.