The leopard that had killed four people in last six months and injured three was shot dead on the outskirts of Rajaji Tiger Reserve near a gate of the Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited, forest officials said.
After the leopard was declared “man-eater”, shooters Dr Prashant and Zaheer Bakshi were called from Dehradun to trace the leopard. They arrived on Saturday evening.
Haridwar forest range officer Dinesh Naudiyal said the leopard was spotted in a forest near BHEL by forest department personnel and local people; the spot was near a Shiva temple on SIIDCUL road. “After the leopard was traced, the shooter duo started their operation and spotted the leopard twice before firing at it on Saturday evening,” Naudiyal said.
“In a single bullet fire, the male man-eater leopard died on the spot. It had created a major scare in the entire BHEL-Ranipur-Jwalapur area. For the past six months, this leopard was being spotted at various locations in the area killing four people. Within three days of the permission granted from higher forest authority, the leopard has been shot dead.”
Naudiyal said, “In first two attempts the leopard could not be shot owing to the movement of people on the road. The shooters then wanted the stretch cleared of people. Finally in the third instance when the leopard was coming out from the forest terrain, it was shot.”
{{/usCountry}}Naudiyal said, “In first two attempts the leopard could not be shot owing to the movement of people on the road. The shooters then wanted the stretch cleared of people. Finally in the third instance when the leopard was coming out from the forest terrain, it was shot.”
{{/usCountry}}Legislator of Ranipur-BHEL Aadesh Chauhan, who had urged with senior forest officials to declare the leopard as a man-eater and catch it, has congratulated divisional forest officials and the shooter duo for providing relief to the local people.
Meanwhile, a swamp deer and a herd of black-spotted deer have been spotted in Roshanabad residential area, which is closer to a forest terrain, by local people in the past two days.