SUMAN K SHRIVASTAVA/
MF AHMAD
Ranchi/Daltonganj, Jan. 10: Palamu Regional Chief Conservator of Forest Kumar Ashutosh today recommended PCCF (Wildlife) Sasikar Samanta to hunt or kill the leopard, who has created terror in around 50 villages in Garhwa and Latehar villages adjoining the Palamu Tiger Reserve (PTC) for the last one month.
The PCCF (wildlife) happens to be the sole authority to sign the death decree of the man-killing and man-eating carnivore which in the forest lingo is described as aberrant wildlife.
Ashutosh has confirmed to have recommended the neutralisation (read killing) of the leopard. He said this is because the leopard has become aberrant and is a great threat to human life.
Furthermore, they are trying to do drug immobilisation of it but it has not brought forth any results so far.
“The killing of the aberrant leopard is the last resort now and I have recommended it,” Ashutosh told Lagatar24.com.
Earlier, an advisory committee set up for it had sent a comprehensive report to the RCCF by the Conservator of Forest, Garhwa, Dileep Kumar Yadav.
PCCF (Wildlife) Sasikar Samanta, however, said that he has not yet gone through the RCCF’s recommendation. “There has to be sufficient ground for issuing such an order,” he added.
Samanta said that there has not been any major incident in the last 13-14 days. “So, we will have to find out whether the leopard has really turned into a man-eater or the incidents which claimed the four lives in the last one month were just accidental,” he maintained.
Meanwhile, Garhwa Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Shashi Kumar said that our team, supported by the Hyderabad hunters, is working overtime to capture the suspected leopard.
“On the night of January 9, the team sighted a leopard at a distance of 50 km at Bariaya village under Bhandariya block. But it could not be tranquilized. But we have located the area in which the beast is moving. Now its movement has been limited to half a dozen villages in Bhandariya and Ramkanda,” he added.
Notably, the death of four people since December 13 last year has created an environment of constant dread and panic for residents in the Palamu Tiger Reserve area and Garhwa district.
Because of the leopard attacks, people of about 150 villages in the area limit their movements to their homes as soon as the sun sets, due to the fear of being attacked by the big cat. The attendance of children in schools has seen a major fall due to the panic. The farmers have been forced to seek company whenever they work in their fields.
The Forest Department claims that only one man-eating leopard is responsible for the deaths, as opposed to the villagers who believe that there are more.
The forest department has put over 50 trap cameras, one drone and a large number of officials to trap the ‘man-eater’ leopard.
The department has also roped in Hyderabad-based celebrated hunter Nawab Shafath Ali Khan to control the big cat. It is suspected that all four including three in Garhwa and one in Latehar district were killed by the same leopard. The victims are in the age group of six and 12 years.
The PCCF (Wildlife) said that we had not much experience in handling such a situation in the past. “But the consultants we have hired have experience of over 30 years. Let us see what he suggests,” he signed off.
