A leopard died after being run over by a speeding vehicle on the NH27 near Ghoshpukur, on the outskirts of Siliguri, on Thursday evening.
Sources in the state forest department said local people spotted the leopard lying on the highway near Gangarampur tea estate.
The injured animal could not stand but crawled into the tea bushes off the highway.
A team from the Ghoshpukur forest range rushed to the spot. They recovered the injured animal and took it to the Bengal Safari Park for treatment. There it succumbed to its injuries on Friday morning.
“It was a one-year-old female leopard. It had suffered multiple injuries. We took it to the Bengal Safari Park for treatment, and at around 2 am, the animal died,” said Devesh Pandey, the divisional forest officer of Kurseong.
Earlier, on December 5, another leopard died at the same spot after being run over by a vehicle.
“We met the district magistrate of Darjeeling and police officials and requested them to intensify police patrolling and enforce speed limits on the highways. We are checking CCTV footage to identify the vehicle that hit the animal.” Pandey added.
Soon, the department will launch an extensive awareness campaign for drivers. “We will also tell them that running over a wild animal is a punishable offence under the Wildlife Protection Act,” he said.