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Leopards keep Shimla residents on tenterhooks
The forest department has installed cages at different localities in Shimla to trap leopards straying into the city.
Leopards from forests in the vicinity of Shimla are straying into human habitations creating fear among people in different localities of Himachal Pradesh’s capital city, forest officials said Wednesday.
Leopards are usually sighted in localities in peripheral areas during the winter months but Tuesday night a leopard was spotted in a cemetery near Bemloe close to main circular road which triggered panic among residents s who called up wildlife department and police official for help.
“A resident who saw the leopard hiding under a railing, alarmed his friends and they later sought help,” said a forest officer who did not want to be named.
Following two other complaints from the residents about the spotted cats being sighted routinely, the forest department has installed cages at different localities in the city.
“So far the leopards have not injured any human though they have been reports of them attacking stray dogs,” said a forest official.
Forest officials say that leopards in the forests around Shimla often visit garbage dumps in search of stray dogs. There have been many instances where leopards have killed stray dogs.
Earlier on Monday night, a bear attacked and injured a cow in Kotgarh’s Kirti village, 76 km away from Shimla, spreading panic among local residents.
According to reports, the bear broke into a cowshed and badly injured the bovine. The bear ran away after local residents arrived on hearing the cow bellowing. Local residents informed the Forest Department about the incident and urged the forest officials to hunt the bear. Locals alleged that bears have been attacking domestic cattle for the past six months and Forest Department and the State Government have failed to take any action.
Divisional Forest Officer Kotgarh Arvind Kumar said “A team of shooters has been deployed in the area and they are searching for the bear.”
