Forest department officials capture leopard in Uttar Pradesh's Meerut

Meerut: A leopard that was spotted near a village in Uttar Pradesh's Meerut district was captured by the forest department team after a two-and-a-half-hour operation on Friday, officials said.

According to Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Rajesh Kumar, local villagers on Friday informed the department about a young leopard sighted in a field in Mubarakpur village, under the Kila Parikshitgarh Range in Mawana tehsil.

"Acting swiftly on the information, two rescue teams were formed under the leadership of Regional Forest Officers Ravi Kant and Khushboo Upadhyay," he said.

He added that the rescue teams immediately reached the spot, assessed the situation in accordance with the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), and devised a plan to capture the leopard.

"The operation was successfully completed. After a medical examination by veterinarians, further action will be taken," he said.

The DFO said that the leopard is male and approximately two years old. "The villagers, including the village head of Mubarakpur, remained calm and cooperated throughout the entire rescue operation," Kumar noted.

This was not the first sighting of a leopard in the district. On Thursday, a similar report of a leopard sighting was received from Rithani in the Paratapur police station area.

Upon receiving the alert, three separate search teams were deployed under the supervision of Regional Forest Officer Ravi Kant Chaudhary.

"The teams searched for several hours around the Sharda Export Company's premises and surrounding areas after some residents reported seeing a leopard there. However, no leopard was spotted during the operation," an official from the forest department said.

Officials have urged the local population to remain vigilant and report any further sightings promptly.