M F AHMAD
Daltonganj, Sept 26: A leopard attacked and injured another worker, Akhilesh Yadav, in the soft release centre of the Sambhars under the Bareysanr range at the Palamu Tiger Reserve late in the afternoon. The animal had sneaked there on early Sunday morning, injuring one tracker Suryanath Yadav at around 6 am.
“Akhilesh has injuries but not worth stitching,” said Garu referral hospital doctor J P Sahu who treated him. He has been given an anti-rabies injection besides an anti-tetanus shot.
Akhilesh told this correspondent that his mobile was damaged in the attack.
Mukesh Kumar, deputy director South division of the PTR, narrated how Akhilesh Yadav was hurt. “I and Akhilesh were cautiously treading the jungle. The leopard was hiding in the bushes barely 10 meters away which we did not know. It suddenly sprang up from the bushes and attacked Yadav and bit on one hand and both legs too,” said Mukesh.
“It was our closest encounter with the leopard. We believe it was more in panic than any of us. Akhilesh was quite lucky not to have injuries like Suryanath Yadav who got 10 stitches, as per the version of his attending doctor,” added Mukesh.
“One more tracker could also have come under the leopard’s attack if he had not run for his life at the neck break speed. He fell in the jungle in his escape bid and sustained multiple laceration wounds,” said Mukesh.
Chief Conservator of Forest and Field Director PTR, Kumar Ashutosh, said: “We got our enclosure opened at one or two points to enable the leopard to get out of the soft release centre. It is at a such site where we hope the leopard will like to negotiate to get out. We had to halt our search for driving out the leopard with the closing of the day following rains and lighting at the site.”
On Sunday, over 60 PTR personnel were out for driving out the leopard but in vain. Till the time of reporting, there is no news coming about the leopard either being driven out or its own exit from there.
