Rampur (Uttar Pradesh): After a 10-hour wild search, a leopard which attacked many people was trapped in Khalkhed village of Tanda block in Ambedkar Nagar district of the state.
The beast broke a trap, set up by the hunters on Sunday, and roamed in the paddy field sending ripples of shockwaves among the dwellers. It took nearly 10 hours of intense hunting for the joint team of the villagers and the forest department to tranquillize the big cat. This is the third catch in the last two months.
DFO Rampur, Rajiv Kumar, said the paddy was filled with water and the marsh trapped the leopard. Putting the animal on tranquillizer was risky as there was a possibility of water entering the lungs posing a threat to its survival. The forest department and other teams, including a wildlife expert from Pilibhit, Dr Daksh, have been engaged in the operation since morning. The leopard's movements were also being monitored with drones and bulldozers were put into action.
Hearing the leopard's growl, the rescue team of 20 people accompanied by some villagers entered the paddy field around 5 pm on Sunday. The best was running amok, trying to attack the team. It was an arduous task for them to trap under the net as there was every possibility of serious injuries even loss of life. Finally, it was netted and sent to the nearest wildlife centre.
The DFO said this is the third leopard caught in two months. If there are more, they will also be caught. On Monday, the leopard will be released in the forest of Pilibhit range. This was the ninth successful operation of the team. According to locals, about four people in the area were injured in the leopard attack and finally, they heaved a sigh of relief after this prized catch.
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