Leopard Found Eating Out Of Trash In Mount Abu, Forest Officer Shares 'Sad' Video

An alarming video highlighting how human encroachment has pushed the wildlife into a corner has gone viral on social media. The 17-second clip shared by Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Parveen Kaswan showcases a leopard foraging for food in a pile of trash near Mount Abu in Rajasthan.

Leopards are one of the most lethal apex predators of nature, known for their stealth, strength and adaptability, but the video shows them in a completely different light. In the clip, the big cat can be seen desperately searching for food in the garbage, going through plastic, dirt and other kinds of rubbish.

"What a sad visual. Shri Shivansh Sah recorded this #leopard near Mount Abu. See how our trash is reaching the wild!" Kaswan captioned the video, which carried a message: "Let's be better, protect forests, manage waste, and give the wild its home back."

Check The Viral Video Here:

What a sad visual. Shri Shivansh Sah recorded this #leopard near Mount Abu.

See how our trash is reaching the wild ! pic.twitter.com/V5YUSOwXiW

— Parveen Kaswan, IFS (@ParveenKaswan) October 18, 2025

Also Read | '1.5 Hours, 7 km, And An 8-Month Pregnant Wife': Bengaluru Man Questions If City Is Liveable

'Habitat Taken Away'

As the video went viral, social media users reacted angrily, demanding strict penalties against those littering and calling for the government to do more about the habitat problem for wild animals.

"Very sad. One thing is clear. We will not change our civic sense voluntarily. It has to be enforced with huge penalties," said one user, while another added: "Their habitat is taken away from them in the guise of development, forests are being destroyed. The environmental damage is immense but it does not matter to the government."

A third commented: "I'm from Mount Abu only. I have shared one video earlier in which two bears were in the dumping yard. Now cows, buffalo, bear and leopard all can be seen together. I don't want to mention names, but they do nothing. Feel so sad."

A fourth said: "So sad, really. When we encroach their land, poor animals have no other option. Man's greed has no end."

As of last year, the leopard population in India stood at 13,874, with a 1.08 per cent per year growth recorded between 2018 and 2022. A report released by the Environment Ministry highlighted that Madhya Pradesh (3907) houses the largest population of leopards in the country, followed by Maharashtra (1985), Karnataka (1,879) and Tamil Nadu (1,070).