Leopard weighing around 40-45 kg causes panic in Panchali, Dibrugarh

A Correspondent

Dibrugarh: In an unnerving and unusual case of man-animal conflict, a leopard weighing around 40-45 kg had pushed the people of Panchali into a state of panic on the morning of Thursday.

Believed to have come via the nearby Brahmaputra, the beast took shelter in an under-construction site before coming out in the open and making the locals go helter-skelter. Responding to the upheaval caused by the people, the animal took a flight, leaped across a few buildings, mauled a person named Lakhinder Rai alias Kalia, who was immediately rushed to the Assam Medical College and Hospitals, and finally took refuge below the tin roof of a house belonging to Ramendra Lal Ghosh. Although Assam Forest was informed shortly after the leopard was sighted, the officials took around two hours to visit the site and take stock of the situation. Even after they arrived, no progress could be made in the rescue operation as the tranquilizer had to be brought only from Guijan, Tinsukia.

At around 2 pm, an expert team from the Wildlife Trust of India finally reached the spot carrying tranquilizer, a cage and other essentials required for rescuing big cats. Eventually, the leopard was successfully tranquilized and safely taken away by the forest officials. Despite the rescue efforts being successful, many conscious citizens have raised a few concerns. They questioned as to why there was no tranquilizer available in the district itself, and who would take responsibility in the event of the beast getting injured or killed at the hands of the frenzied public in the wake of the non-availability of the tranquilizer?

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