Conservation plan flags Northeast India as key stronghold for clouded leopard
A new Wildlife Institute of India action plan identifies 14 priority landscapes across Northeast India and connected habitats in nearby countries to protect the
India’s latest conservation roadmap for the clouded leopard places the Northeast at the centre of its efforts to protect one of Asia’s most elusive big cats. The approach is set out in the 2026 Conservation Action Plan for Caracal, Fishing Cat and Clouded Leopard, prepared by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII). It identifies 14 priority landscapes across the region, stretching from Himalayan foothills to forests near Bangladesh and Myanmar.
In the plan, the Northeast is described as the country’s principal stronghold for the clouded leopard. It highlights the need for landscape-level conservation that does not stop at state boundaries. The priority landscapes cover Sikkim, West Bengal, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura, along with connected transboundary habitats linked with Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar.
Northeast’s connected forests under a single strategy
The action plan focuses on how conserving connected forest areas can help maintain viable clouded leopard populations over time. It lists several linked landscape pairs and routes, including West Bengal–Assam linked with Bhutan, Assam–Arunachal Pradesh, Assam–Nagaland, Assam–Meghalaya, Meghalaya linked with Bangladesh, and Mizoram–Tripura linked with Bangladesh. It also identifies Meghalaya and Mizoram habitats linked with Bangladesh and Myanmar, respectively, and Tripura linked with Bangladesh.
Officials also point to ongoing conservation work in parts of the Northeast. Meghalaya has launched Mission Clouded Leopard, while camera-trap studies from protected areas in Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram continue to report the species in forests where scientific information has been limited.
Threats and the action plan’s focus areas
The plan warns that even with the clouded leopard getting the highest legal protection under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, the species faces growing pressures. It cites habitat fragmentation and deforestation, poaching, and declining prey populations. It also notes that clouded leopard conservation has often been fragmented, with limited data and low coordination across landscapes.
To address this, the WII proposes a set of linked actions. These include research, habitat restoration, population monitoring, anti-poaching measures and community participation. The plan also calls for integrating climate resilience into wildlife management and strengthening cooperation among neighbouring states and countries, reflecting that clouded leopards move through forest corridors beyond political borders. The document separately outlines recovery strategies for the fishing cat and the Asiatic caracal, but stresses that the clouded leopard’s long-term future is closely tied to the Northeast’s forests.
