Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams forest wing traps sixth leopard at Alipiri walkway
This is the sixth leopard to have been trapped at the 7th mile after the attack on a six-year-old boy on June 22.
Published: 21st September 2023 08:36 AM | Last Updated: 21st September 2023 08:36 AM | A+A A-
Trapped leopard being shifted to SV ZOO Park by the forest department at Tirumala on Wednesday | Madhav K
TIRUPATI: Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) forest wing officials trapped another leopard at the 7th mile on the footpath route to Tirumala from Alipiri during the early hours of Wednesday. This is the sixth leopard to have been trapped at the 7th mile after the attack on a six-year-old boy on June 22.
On being informed, TTD Board chairman B Karunakar Reddy along with TTD EO Dharma Reddy and CCF wildlife management visited the spot. On their directions, the big cat was shifted to SV Zoological Park.
Here it should be noted that on Tuesday, forest officials released two leopards deep into the forest, as their DNA samples did not match with the one that had fatally attacked six-year-old Lakshita. Interestingly at around midnight, the camera had captured the movements of a sloth bear that was found moving at the vicinity where the trap for the leopard was laid.
At present, including the leopard caught on Wednesday, there are three leopards that are now housed in Animal Rescue Centre - II of the SV Zoological Park. Meanwhile, forest officials said a few wildlife enthusiasts have reportedly knocked on the doors of the court questioning the trapping of wild animals in the reserve forest. It was pointed out that Seshachalam Bio Reserve is home to several species of animals.
On the other hand, villagers of Chakarayapet mandal of Kadapa district are worried as incidents of leopards killing their cattle have increased. Shepherds, who normally take their sheep and goats to Ramireddy Cheruvu in the mandal, claimed that sheep went missing two days ago and urged the forest department officials to take measures to address the issue. Chakrayapeta mandal is located in north-western parts of Seshachalam reserve forest.
Following the complaints, the forest officials inspected the area and ruled out the possibility of leopards moving in the area and suspected that it might be a pack of wolves or foxes. However, on a precautionary note, they urged the villagers not to venture into the area for some time and assured to set up trap cameras.
