The leopard which had fallen to the trap in the woods, near the house of one Shankar Bhat in Padaaru was rescued succesfully by the forest department officials.
On Thursday morning, some school children heard the leopard crying in pain. Frightened by the sound, the children rushed back to their homes and informed about the same.When the parents of the children brought the news to the notice of Shankar Bhat, he visited the spot and found the leopard stuck in the noose left by some miscreants to hunt wild boar. Bhat, instantly called the police and the forest officials and informed about the state of the leopard.
Bantwal Range Forest Officr Subbaiah Naik visited the spot and handed over the rescue operation to Pilikula Nisargadhama personnel. Mangalore Mobile Forest Squad Officers M M Jaya, N Raja and team visited the spot along with team of personnel from Pilikula Nisargadhama at about 2 pm. By this time, the villagers were rushing to the forest in large numbers to have glimpses of the leopard. Controlling the crowd turned out to be a Herculean task for the Vitla police.
Veterinary doctor Dr Jithesh, Pilikula Medical Officer Vikram, supervisor Roshan Menezes, Jayaraj and others administered the tranquiliser to the leopard. First time the tranquiliser did not hit the target. The second shot of tranquiliser hit the leopard and within few minutes the leopard was in unconscious state. The leopard was soon removed from the trap and was safely put into the cage.
The leopard is said to be about 6 years old. Since there are possibilities of the animal suffering internal injuries, it will be kept at Pilikula for observation and treatment for few days.
On recovery, it will be released to Kalenjimale Reserve Forest, near Vitla.
