Reshma and Raja are just two more casualties of the current tumult in Jammu and Kashmir, but they are unlikely to make too many headlines given that they were mere animals. However, the fact that they were victims of the ‘economic blockade’ here is undeniable. The two leopards starved to death at Manda Zoo, located in Jammu’s Ramnagar Wildlife Sanctuary, since food supplies had been affected due to the Jammu bandh called over the Amarnath land row.

According to official sources, the two animals, members of an endangered species, slowly wasted away over a period of about 13 days. While Reshama died on

July 31, 20-year-old Raja lost his life this Tuesday, despite the desperate attempts of a veterinary team. According to Nasir Ahmed Kitchloo, regional wildlife warden, Jammu, even though post-mortems are being conducted on the felines, it is clear that they died because they did not get enough to eat. “We would get supplies of feeds and fodders from Gangyal-based Jammu and Kashmir Agro Industries, a state government undertaking. However, the factory has been closed because of the bandh,” said the wildlife warden, further informing, “We tried to get them meat and other food items, but we couldn’t since shops across Jammu are closed.”

“The death of Reshama is sad enough, but the loss of Raja has come as a personal shock for me, as I had brought him from Sunderbani in Rajouri district. In fact, I’m the one who named him,” said Kitchloo, adding that the 20-year-old male leopard had formed part of the first batch of the three common leopards to have been showcased at Manda Zoo since 1989. On the other hand, Reshama, rescued from the forests of Nagrota about six months ago, was a more recent addition to Manda, the only rescue centre for wild species in the Jammu region. Found in an injured state on the outskirts of Jammu on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway, she was transported to the zoo by state wildlife officials.

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