Dr Bhakta Bahadur Raskoti has named the species ‘nimspurjae’ after the famous mountaineer Nirmal Purja.

Nepal achieves the feat of doubling the big cat population as per its 2010 pledge. Focus now should be on sustainability and reducing conflicts, as conservation success has come at human costs, experts say.

The number increased by 120 in four years, as country successfully achieves the goal of doubling the big cat population by 2022.

New programmes needed for livelihoods of people living near buffer zones and their participation in conservation efforts.

As count of the wild cats begins, new action plan is needed to sustain them by conserving habitats, increasing prey density and mitigating conflict with humans, experts say.