Leopard remains elusive, combing operation on in T. Narsipura

As many as 74 camera traps and 18 cages have been installed in the taluk after back-to-back incidents of leopard attacks

No leopard movement has been caught in camera traps that are installed in villages, facing the threat of leopard attacks, in T. Narasipur taluk. Efforts to trap the elusive killer leopard have been intensified after an 11-year-old boy was killed in an attack reported on January 21 at Horalahalli.

The back-to-back episodes of leopard attacks that claimed two human lives recently have put the district administration on alert with the forest staff on their toes to capture the leopard as soon as possible for bringing respite to the unnerved villagers.

The boy, Jayanth, was attacked and killed by the leopard when he went out of the house at Horalahalli on January 21 while 60-year-old Siddamma was attacked when she went to fetch firewood close to her house at Kannanayakanahalli on January 20. Two students – Manjunath and Meghana – were killed in separate leopard attacks last year.

Malathi Priya, Chief Conservator of Forest, Mysuru Circle said combing operations have been continued but no leopard movement has been registered in any camera trap installed in the taluk.

In total, 18 cages and 74 camera traps have been deployed to capture the leopard that is on the prowl. As many as 13 teams consisting of 90 staff are on the pursuit of the feline.

The villagers have urged the authorities to clear overgrown shrubbery on the roadsides and around the villages that have come under leopard attacks. They have complained that the dense undergrowth has become hideouts for the leopards which attacked and killed humans. The large tracts of land where the weeds are dense needs to be cleared as a safety measure, they demanded.

When asked about the overgrown vegetation that are turning out to be perfect hideouts for leopards, Minister in-charge of Mysuru district S.T. Somashekar, who visited the families of Jayanth and Siddamma on Tuesday, January 24, promised to look into the matter and ask the authorities to ensure that the vegetation was cleared.