Rajkot: The Forestry Department ordered an investigation after the lion was destroyed to death by a quick vehicle on the Amreli-Mahuva highway on Monday morning.
The five-year-old Lion carcass was discovered by the Forestry Department near the Goradka Bus Stand in Savarkundla on Monday morning.
Forest officials said that lions were beaten by heavy vehicles maybe a truck or tanker.
The Head of the Forest Conservator (Wildlife) D T Vasavda said, “Postmortem’s report confirmed that the lion died of an injury suffering in an accident on the road.” Eyewitnesses claimed that the lion was dragged by about 10 feet after being under the wheel of heavy vehicles.
Lion activists have argued that the movement of heavy vehicles on the highway in Amreli District and Gir Somnath posing is a greater threat to lions that are now moving out of the forest area.
Also, the increase in the frequency of trucks and trailers on the highway because the activities in Pipavav at Amreli have increased concerns.
Amreli’s district alone has around 130 lions, according to the Ministry of Forestry.
In March, a female lion was killed after being hit by a truck near Port Pipavav.
Lion died after being hit by a freight train in February in the same district, while in August, a five-year-old Lion was trimmed to death by a train item near Amreli Khadkala Village.
Bhushan Pandya, a wildlife activist said, “The Forestry Department must identify the lion corridor and build bridges to avoid accidents like that.
It also has to put speed breakers and improve the speed limit for vehicles on certain streets where they find more lion movements tall.
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