Maharashtra’s forest minister on Tuesday said he had advised wildlife officials to release goats in large numbers inside forests, arguing it could dissuade leopards from wandering into human settlements in search of prey.

Speaking during a calling attention motion on rising leopard attacks, **Forest Minister Ganesh Naik** said compensation payouts had climbed sharply.

“If four people are killed in leopard attacks, the state must pay ₹1 crore (as compensation). So I told officials, instead of paying compensation after deaths, release goats worth ₹1 crore into the forest so leopards do not venture into human habitats,” he said.

Naik said leopard behaviour has shifted in recent years. “Earlier, they were described as forest animals, but now their habitat has shifted to sugarcane fields,” he added.

Ahilyanagar, Pune and Nashik districts were reporting the highest number of leopard-related incidents, the minister said.