A two-and-a-half-year-old leopard, who was rescued with the help of iron cage in the residential area of Badshahpur village, at the foothills of the Aravallis in Gurugram on Friday, was released in the jungle of Aravalli Mountain after being provided proper medical treatment, on Saturday.
Officials said that after entering into a salon of the residential area, village Badshahpur, the wild cat had sustained some scratches on its face due to broken glass of the salon.
Gurugram District Forest (Wildlife) officer Rajendra Dange said, “As per the information, the leopard had entered the residential area of Badshahpur on Friday noon. A team of Forest department (Wildlife) rushed to the village after being informed.
The leopard was rescued after one hour without using tranquilisers. Team members had used an iron cage for successful rescue operation of the leopard. After being provided proper medical treatment, Leopard was released in the jungle of Aravalli Mountain.”
The Forest officer further said that it is a normal phenomenon that leopards come in residential area owing to various reasons. Nothing can be done to prevent them coming in residential area. He said the department’s direction regarding the safety and security of the leopards and other wildlife is being implemented strictly. He rubbished charges of any negligence on the part of the department.
The residents of Badshahpur village in Gurgaon faced a scary situation on Friday afternoon after a young male leopard entered a house and then a salon. A man sustained minor injuries as the leopard scratched him while running towards a shop. The shopkeeper rushed out and downed the shutters. He called up wildlife officials, who rescued the leopard after two hours. As the news of the incident spread, thousands of locals gathered at the place leading to huge chaos in the area. The officers of forest department (Wildlife), Police and other administrative officers rushed to the spot and ensured the situation under control.
According to department official, the big cat was spotted in the lawn of a house around 5 pm as villagers raised the alarm, the leopard panicked and ran helter-skelter before entering a shop. However, the salon operators, who managed to flee safely, showed presence of mind to lock the animal inside. The wildlife officials later secured the wild cat. Leopard was examined medically and it was let off in the jungle.
The official said that the leopard habitat has been estimated to be spread around 200 sq km alongside the concrete jungles of Aravallis. Five National Capital Region (NCR) districts of Gurugram, Faridabad, Mewat, Rewari and Mahendragarh are home to leopards, jackals and hyenas, besides several other wild species.
Moreover, sources in the forest department (wildlife) said that it is needed to understand why leopards are changing their place frequently? There might be various reasons of changing their locations frequently in the forest area. They might leave their designated area in search of food.
Or they might come near residential areas to protect themselves from poachers. The increase in the number of human-animal conflicts in the area over the last few years has necessitated protection of wildlife habitat in the Aravalli range.
The forest (wildlife) department has constructed several forest posts at different places in the Aravalli mountain range in Gurgaon district. Besides forest posts at Gairatpur village, the department has constructed makeshift posts at Aravalli Retreat, Raisina Village, Maneser, Gwal Pahadi, Sehrawan, Bhondsi and Damdama areas.
These places are known for high population of leopards, he said, adding around half dozen leopards died due to various reasons in Gurugram over the last few months. After several incidents of leopard deaths and poaching were reported, especially in Gurugram district, a proper inquiry or investigation is needed regarding the same.