Anil Rajaram Khaire (65) died due to a brief illness in the city on Sunday. He is survived by his wife and son. His elder brother Neelim Kumar Khaire, a snake expert, and he were the spirit behind creating public awareness about wildlife and snakes for over a decade.
Anil formed the Indian Herpetological Society (IHS) that manages the Katraj Snake Park and the rescue centre at Rajiv Gandhi Zoological Research centre.
An ITI graduate and having worked in Telco before developing interest in nature conservation, he trained at the Jersey Wildlife Conservation Trust (now Durrell Wildlife Trust) in England.
He also served as director of Bahinabai Chaudhary Park, Pimpri-Chinchwad. A campaign to safely capture and release leopards in Kondhwa area of Pune was conducted under his leadership.