Leopard enters house, trapped

A leopard, which was chasing a dog, entered a house at Muntipura in Gundlupet taluk on Monday night, while a farmer was injured in a bear attack at Kuppalli, in Hassan taluk, on Tuesday morning. The big cat entered the house of Ravalaiah in Muntipura around 8.30 pm on Monday when the family members were having dinner.

It entered a room where Ravalaiah’s daughter Nagamma was nursing her baby and settled under a cot.

While Nagamma, Ravalaiah and his wife Chikkathayamma rushed out of the house, crying for help, Nagamma’s husband Nanjaiah rescued the baby and locked the house from outside.

The Forest department officials were alerted after the villagers confirmed the presence of the leopard inside the house.

The officials tranquilised the leopard and trapped it on Tuesday. It was later learnt that the same leopard had attacked some boys at Kumatigudda nearby.  It had been trapped, radio-collared and was released to Mulehole forest. The officials said the leopard would be shifted to the Bannerghatta Biological Park soon.

Bear attack

A bear attacked a farmer, Kumar, at Kuppalli in Hassan taluk, when he was bound for his farm on Tuesday morning.

As it had rained on Monday night, Kumar had planned to sow potatoes and was going to his farmland around 6 pm.

He was alerted by some neighbouring farmers not to venture forward. However, by then, the bear had attacked him. He was later treated in the Hassan district government hospital.

Farmer killed

In another incident at Valagerehalli in Maddur taluk of Mandya district, a farmer, who had been to his sugarcane fields to switch on the irrigation pump set at 11 pm, was mauled to death by a leopardess on Monday night.

The victim has been identified as Shivaraju (52). Accompanied by son Naveen, Shivaraju went to the field at that time as three-phase power supply for IP sets is available only during the night.

The leopardess, along with her two cubs – which were reportedly roaming in the surrounding villages since six months – attacked Shivaraju.

Tigress driven back to forest

The tigress, which was spotted near Hangala in Gundlupet taluk, Chamarajanagar district, and injured one person on Monday, has been driven away into the forest, according to Bandipur Tiger Reserve Director H C Kantharaju.

Pug marks of tigress, found during combing operations, on Tuesday, indicate that it has moved towards Bheemanabidu forest range. The department would continue the combing operations on Wednesday, to ensure that the tiger has not returned towards residential areas.