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Leopard enters Jaipur’s high-security Civil Lines; rescued after two hours
The entire high-security zone, which includes the Raj Bhavan, the chief minister’s residence, and homes of several ministers and senior bureaucrats, was placed on alert.
A leopard strayed into the VVIP Civil Lines area of Jaipur on Thursday morning, triggering panic among residents and authorities for nearly two hours. The incident unfolded around 9am when the animal first entered a house in Lane No. 6.
A forest official said the leopard then moved towards the government bungalow of state water resources minister Suresh Singh Rawat, where it was spotted roaming inside the premises. Minutes later, it entered Tiny Blossom Senior Secondary School, forcing teachers to lock children inside their classrooms as a precaution.
For the next hour, it continued moving from one house to another, making it difficult for the forest department’s rescue team to pin down its location. The entire high-security zone, which includes the Raj Bhavan, the chief minister’s residence, and homes of several ministers and senior bureaucrats, was placed on alert.
Around 11am, after an extensive search, forest officials managed to locate the leopard in the same house in Lane No. 6 where it had first taken shelter. A trained team successfully tranquilised the animal and transported it to the Jhalana Leopard Reserve for medical evaluation and safe relocation.
State chief wildlife warden Shikha Mehra said that leopard numbers are rising within their habitats, and such incidents highlight the need for citizens to immediately inform the department in case of wildlife movement.
“With everyone’s cooperation, the leopard was successfully tranquilised. People should alert the department whenever such situations arise,” she said.
In recent months, there have been several sightings across city localities including Durgapura, Jaysinghpura, Jagatpura, Kho-Nagoriyan, and Vidhyadhar Nagar. On August 21, a leopard was spotted near Gopalpura Mod.
Experts believe a shortage of prey in forest areas is driving leopards toward human settlements, increasing the risk of conflict.
