Pune, 11th May 2026: A fully grown leopard that entered the premises of the Mercedes-Benz Group manufacturing plant in Chakan triggered panic among employees and led to the temporary shutdown of production operations for two days before it was finally rescued on Monday.
According to forest officials, CCTV footage captured on Saturday morning showed the leopard entering the company premises in search of prey. The animal eventually became trapped inside a large shop floor within the manufacturing unit, creating a tense situation for workers and management alike. As a precautionary measure, the company halted production activities for the past two days to ensure employee safety.
Officials said locating and capturing the leopard inside the sprawling manufacturing facility proved to be a major challenge due to the vast area of the plant. Teams from the forest department, along with wildlife rescue organisations, conducted an intensive search operation to trace the animalтАЩs exact location.
After nearly two days of continuous efforts, the leopard was successfully trapped in a cage placed inside the unit on Monday while it was reportedly searching for prey. Forest officials identified the animal as a healthy male leopard aged between 3.5 and 4 years.
The rescue operation was carried out under the guidance of Conservator of Forests Ashish Thakare, Deputy Conservator of Forests Prashant Khade, and Assistant Conservator of Forests Amrut Shinde.
The operation involved the coordinated efforts of Range Forest Officer Santosh Kank, Forester Indalkar, Ms Jagtap, Ms Pisal, the Chakan Forest Department staff, Mahendra Dhore, Dr Avinash Visalkar from the Manikdoh Rescue Centre, and teams from RESQ Charitable Trust and Wildlife SOS.
Police Inspector Vijay Dhamale from Mhalunge Police Station, along with Mercedes-Benz administrative officials Sarang Joshi and Venkatesh Kulkarni, also assisted in the operation.
The successful capture of the leopard brought relief to employees of the manufacturing plant as well as residents in the surrounding area after two days of uncertainty and tension.
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