Alleged Man Eater Leopard That Has Reportedly Killed Two Children Shot Dead In Uttarakhand

A leopard that had reportedly turned maneater and had made two kills recently has been shot dead in Uttarakhand.

The leopard that was declared a ¡®man-eater¡¯ on June 30, after it killed two children was shot dead on Saturday in the Badrinath forest division.

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The leopard had made its first kill on May 28 in the Gairbaram area of the division when it attacked an 11-year-old girl in Narayanbagarh forest range in Chamoli district.

This was followed by another kill on June 29, when a four-year-old boy in Bhayada Malethi village was attacked by the big cat, following which it was declared a man-eater and dangerous to human life.

After days of search, the leopard was spotted at the location of its second kill on Friday night and shot dead. This is the first ¡®man-eater¡¯ leopard killed this year in Badrinath forest division.

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¡°The leopard, which had killed both the children, was identified by its pugmarks. The villages of both the victims are aerially less than 2 km apart. It was finally shot dead by shooter Joy Hukkil when it revisited Gairbaum village, just 100 metres away from its second kill,¡± Chamoli divisional forest officer (DFO) Ashutosh Singh said.

While one man-eater has been identified and killed, there is a fear that there could be more such threats lurking in the wilderness.

There are at least six leopards that have been identified as ¡®dangerous to human life¡¯ and forest officials are on the lookout for two more leopards in Almora and Nainital that have killed three persons each.

Recently the Forest Department had issued the permit to tranquilize and cage the leopard in Almora.

This was after it killed a one-and-a-half-year-old child.

BCCL/ FILE

It was the fifth incident of human killing in the last two years in that area by the leopard, though it is unclear if it was done by the same predator.

In Nainital too, forest officials are planning to deploy shooters to locate the big cat which has killed three persons.

12 people have been killed by leopards in the state this year alone raising concerns among villagers and environmentalists.

BCCL

Conservationists argue that human-animal conflicts are on the rise in the state due to the rapid deforestation, which is forcing the leopards out of their natural habitat, in search of food.

With the reduction of their habitat, the leopards stray into human areas in search of food like dogs and cattle.