COIMBATORE: Officials of the Hindu Religious and Endowment Department (HR&CE) have barred entry of devotees at Maruthamalai temple from evening 7 pm after a leopard was spotted roaming inside the temple on Friday.
This animal was roaming near the Thangaratham parking and it was recorded on a CCTV camera placed in the temple. As a result, HRCE officials have placed boards advising the devotees to avoid visiting the temple after 7 pm. The temple usually opens at 4 am during auspicious days and 5.30 am on normal days. The temple closes at 8 pm every day. However, the crows would only come down after 9 am.
Before the leopard was caught on CCTV, Adivasi people living near the temple have also complained that a few of their dogs went missing recently. It is suspected that the leopard could have lifted their dogs.
Though there were incidents of wild elephants have crossed the steps that were used by devotees to reach the temple and the devotees were stopped to proceed further by the forest department staff, this is the first time that the HRCE officials have issued an advisory barring the entry of the devotees to avoid leopard human conflict.
According to TK Ashok Kumar District Forest Officer of Coimbatore Forest division "We have asked the HRCE officials to control the crowd during the night since the animal may visit the place between 7 pm and 5.30 am that's why the officials have started barring devotees at 7 pm. Since it is a nocturnal animal, it may come in search of prey. Though the Adivasi people claim that their dogs were killed and taken by the leopard, we do not have any evidence."
The DFO also said that the temple itself is located amidst the forest on 13 acres of land and since the temple authorities have CCTV cameras DFO is not installing new ones to monitor the animal.