Wild Encounters in Glum Urban Forest

With dwindling forests and disruption in the natural food chain cycle, the conflict between wild animals and humans has spread across India. Wildlife sightings and encounters have increased -- snakes slithering into apartments, monkeys creating a menace in high-rise buildings, leopards entering homes and elephants raiding gardens. All of it has now become a routine affair. But all hell breaks loose when there is loss of a human life and pets. Across India’s swelling skylines, the line between wildlife habitat and human housing has been erased mercilessly. Forests are flattened, wetlands filled, green buffers nibbled away – all in the name of progress. But Nature, it turns out, does not sign eviction notices quietly.

A fortnight ago, when a leopard ventured into a housing society in Bhayandar, Mumbai it sent panic waves across the plush western suburbs. WhatsApp groups buzzed louder than cicadas, CCTV cameras and the media circus went on in full swing. The poor leopard that had been confused, displaced and cornered, became the main villain of the hour. The irony prowled in the background. It wasn’t the leopard straying into the city, it was the city that had encroached into the forest and the leopard’s corridor.

The outskirts of Hyderabad tell a similar tale. Once buffered by rocky scrublands and forest patches, the city’s rapid expansion has pushed wildlife into shrinking pockets. Leopards and snakes have been spotted near residential layouts, peacocks parade across highways looking for food and mates, wild boars uproot manicured lawns as if mocking our obsession with order. And then there’s Kerala, where lushness masks conflict. As forest edges blur with plantations and homesteads, elephants wander into villages, drawn by crops that replace native forage.

YVBS, Chetan Kumar, Field Director, Animal Warriors Conservation Society (AWCS) from Hyderabad says there is a rise in human-animal encounters. “The situation is more complex than it appears,” says Kumar. He adds that the surge in human–animal encounters is largely a consequence of flawed urban planning — particularly negligent waste management — which lures wildlife into towns and cities in search of easy food. As natural habitats are erased and green corridors severed, many species are being forced to adapt to urban landscapes to survive. He adds that these encounters only seem more frequent because of the widespread use of security cameras and intrusion-alert systems; animals that have always passed through these spaces are now simply being seen.

Kumar says, “In most cases, these animals are not aggressive but human panic or careless reactions can quickly turn a harmless situation into a dangerous one for both sides.”

Karan Solanki, a Wildlife Rescuer and Photographer at Aasha The Hope for Animals Welfare Trust NGO, Mumbai says, “Fear-driven reactions like mobbing, chasing, bursting firecrackers or spreading misinformation on social media escalate the situation and increase stress for the animal.” He shares that cities, especially like Mumbai, built around forest or mangroves have been extensions into green spaces. Karan quips, “When we encroach on these spaces without planning ecological buffers, animals don’t suddenly enter into cities, cities expand into their territories.”

The result is clear. Fear on both sides. Animals, confused and stressed, react instinctively. And often, it is the animal that pays the ultimate price, declared a “threat”, tranquilized and relocated. The city moves on while the forest is pushed back.

Frequent Sightings

Human-wildlife interactions are everyday affairs, especially in urban and human dominant landscapes. Advocate Pawan Sharma, Founder & President, Reshink Association for Wildlife Welfare (RAWW) Mumbai explains how these interactions can be divided into positive and negative ones. He quips, “Negative scenarios often lead to human-animal conflict situations, which lead to damage or loss to both humans and animals.”

Adv Pawan says that the unchecked expansion of infrastructure and facilities to satisfy escalating human demands has triggered rampant development, resulting in large-scale habitat loss and environmental degradation — key drivers of human–animal conflict. He further adds, “Beyond these primary causes, the contributing factors differ from case to case and are shaped by geographical demographics, local ecosystems, and the specific species involved.”

Harmonious Living

Harmonious coexistence starts with accountability. Cities must first clean up themselves. That is, secure waste, stop feeding wildlife through negligence and design urban spaces that do not invite animals only to push and punish them later. Adv Pawan quips, “Overnight solutions aren’t going to help. What we need is a systematic and strategic response to these encounters.”

Adv. Pawan Sharma says every city, town and village has its own conflict species, yet human–wildlife conflict is often judged only through the lens of human loss, allowing the suffering of wildlife, especially lesser-known species to go unnoticed. Take for instance, across India, human–snake conflict remains the most widespread and deadly, making the country the global epicentre of snakebite fatalities — an outcome rooted in forest clearing and farm expansion.

The conflicts involving primates, herbivores and birds are equally severe but normalised — macaques, langurs, nilgai, deer, parakeets and peacocks destroy crops in rural landscapes, while urban areas see monkeys raiding homes, snakes slithering up in residential and commercial spaces, and birds dying in collisions with glass-heavy high-rises or aircraft.

Chetan Kumar says, “Peaceful coexistence is possible when cities prioritise sound urban planning, effective waste management and sustained public awareness.” He shares that in Hyderabad, the Animal Warriors Conservation Society is receiving a growing number of rescue calls involving monitor lizards, mongooses, palm civets and porcupines — clear indicators of how urban spaces are increasingly offering both shelter and food to wildlife.

Wild Ahead

Coexistence is no longer a choice. It is a consequence of how far cities have pushed into the wild. Every animal sighting is a mirror held up to human excess, poor planning and collective neglect. Perhaps, coexistence is not about choosing humans over animals or vice versa. It is about choosing responsibility over recklessness and compassion over control!

Helpline Numbers

• Animal Warriors Conservation Society, Hyderabad: 9697887888

• Maharashtra Forest Department Number: 1926

• Friend of Snakes Society, Hyderabad: 8374233366