In pics: Leopard walks into Gurgaon village, six of a family trapped for hours

A leopard that strayed into Durga Colony of Sohna, 25km from Gurgaon, was caught by forest officials on Thursday. The big cat had attacked locals and entered a house where six residents were trapped as the rescue operation was carried out for five hours.

A leopard was caught after five-hour drama at Durga Colony of Sohna locality, 25km from Gurgaon. Locals said the leopard had been around the locality since 3am and entered the residential area at 9am. The big cat was tranquillised and caught at 2.30pm by forest officials. The animal had attacked a youth and a child before entering a house where it was caught later.

Leopard was carried to safety after it being tranquilled at around 2.30pm in Sohna village of Gurgaon. (HT Photo)

Take a look at the pictures as the drama unfolded in this Sohna Village:

The leopard, which was first on the staircase of the house, later came to the first floor. In videos recorded by HT, the animal could be seen trying to find its way out right before being tranquillised. In an earlier incident in the nearby Mandawar on November 24 last year, the leopard was killed by locals.

Residents were trapped inside as rescue operation was on to extract the leopard. The big cat had entered a house catching a man, who was watching TV, by surprise. The family members then locked themselves indoors as forest officials and cops arrived on the scene.

HT Photo (HT Photo)

The family could come out of hiding only five hours later when the leopard was finally tranquilled after two failed attempts. Kamar Pal, 43, said his wife was washing clothes outside and the leopard had followed her indoors. His son, who was watching TV spotted the leopard and locked the room where are the members were present. “We were very scared and were not sure if we will escape unhurt,” said Pal.

The forest officials brought in tranquilliser, cages and nets to catch the leopard. However, the animal could not be sedated in the first two attempts. The area, however, has seen such cases before. Kanwar Pal was also present in Mandawar when such an incident happed there.

The forest officials also used nets to cover the house so that the leopard could not escape. Luv Kumar, 24, who was attacked by the leopard said the animal had jumped over an auto and chased another man before entering the house. Kumar received scratches on his face and was rushed to a local hospital.

Eager locals came out to see the leopard and get pictures clicked. Forest officials say that scarcity of water in the Aravallis forces the big cats to venture into human habitats. Aravallis also act as a green corridor for animals between Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary and Sariska Tiger Reserve.