Mumbai zoo loses Royal Bengal Tiger Shakti to lung failure

Shakti is survived by his mate Karishma, a female Royal Bengal Tiger who came along with him to the Mumbai zoo on February 12, 2020. The pair had two cubs—Jay and Rudra—on November 4, 2022. While Rudra passed away a while ago, Jay recently celebrated his third birthday

MUMBAI: The Byculla Zoo on November 17 lost one of its three Royal Bengal Tigers, Shakti, a fact that came to light on Wednesday and led to charges of negligence and a “suspicious” death. The 9.6-year-old tiger had shown no symptoms till two days before his death due to pneumonia-triggered respiratory failure as per the preliminary autopsy report.

Mumbai, India – July 29, 2025: Visitors look at the Royal Bengal Tiger "Shakti" roaming inside its enclosure on the occasion of International Tiger Day, at Byculla Zoo, in Mumbai, India, on Tuesday, July 29, 2025. (Photo by Bhushan Koyande/ Hindustan Times)

Shakti is survived by his mate Karishma, a female Royal Bengal Tiger who came along with him to the Mumbai zoo on February 12, 2020. The pair had two cubs—Jay and Rudra—on November 4, 2022. While Rudra passed away a while ago, Jay recently celebrated his third birthday.

“Shakti’s death came as a shock,” said zoo director Sanjay Tripathi. “The Friday before his death, he was on display and very active, splashing around in the pool. The next day, however, he did not eat. We then kept him under veterinary observation and gave him oral medicines.”

When Shakti ate a little chicken on Sunday, he began vomiting. “As the retching worsened the next morning, we moved him into an inspection cage for treatment,” said Tripathi. “Immediately after the shifting, at around 12.15 pm, he started having severe convulsions, tried to bite the cage bars and collapsed. It’s shocking to see such a powerful animal die before your eyes.”

After Shakti’s death, zoo officials called in doctors from the Mumbai Veterinary College, Parel, for an autopsy. “Ninety percent of his lungs were not functioning as per the preliminary autopsy report, which points to a chronic cause,” said Tripathi. The exact cause of death was noted as ‘pyogranulomatous pneumonia resulting in respiratory failure’, indicating lung inflammation. The detailed autopsy report is awaited. Samples of Shakti’s organs have also been sent to the Wildlife Research and Training Centre, Gorewada, Nagpur, for further examination.

A biologist who works with the zoo and conducts daily checks on its inmates, explained, “The animals’ keepers track their activity, including how active they are and how much food they’ve eaten, as it is during these times that symptoms of illness appear. The rounds are done twice a day and the findings are reported to the zoo vet.”

As per rules, the Central Zoo Authority and the Maharashtra State Zoo Authority were informed about Shakti’s death within 24 hours. As information regarding his death was kept under wraps, possibly due to the awaited detailed post-mortem report, allegations floated around about the death being “suspicious” and due to “negligence”. An activist Prathamesh Jagtap alleged that Shakti died from a bone stuck in his trachea while Shiv Sena MLA Ajay Chaudhary questioned the delay in announcing the death. The zoo authorities have denied all the allegations and said that everything was done as per procedure.