For most people in Mumbai, ‘wildlife’ probably means a chance encounter with a swooping kite or spotting a monkey on the sidewalk. But barely 20 kilometres from the noisy lanes of Bandra where wild party animals rule the night, in the suburbs of Borivli, Goregaon and Powai, ‘wild’ has acquired a different meaning. The spotted leopards, Sanjay Gandhi National Park’s most charismatic residents, are fighting back against human encroachment in their territory — increasing man-animal conflict in the area like never before.

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