Aarey animal attacks: One leopard trapped, cages to remain, say authorities

The leopard that was trapped in Aarey in the early hours of Friday

A leopard was successfully trapped in one of the cages set up by forest officials inside Aarey Milk Colony in the early hours of Friday. The authorities are, however, yet to ascertain if it is the same animal that is believed to be attacking people over the past month. Since August 31, six people have been injured in leopard attacks, while many have said that a leopard charged at them.

Alarmed at the surge in man-animal encounters, forest officials have set up three cages at three different locations in Aarey.

Rajesh Rawat was attacked by a leopard on Thursday night

Late on Thursday, Rajesh Rawat, in his 20s, was left wounded by a leopard. Up until the recent spate of attacks, no Aarey resident had been targeted by a big cat in
two years.

The trapped animal was taken to the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) for a medical check-up.

G Mallikarjun, SGNP director, told mid-day, "The leopard that has been trapped is a female of around 1.5-2 years and it was trapped close to one of the conflict sites. Experts will match its rosette pattern [spots on the skin] with the suspected leopard responsible for the attacks."

Officials said they have activated all the cages inside the green zone.

To prevent further attacks on locals, teams from the Thane forest division and SGNP are not just setting up cages but also patrolling the area at night. Assistant Conservator of Forest Girija Desai from Thane also joined the patrol, sources told mid-day.

Locals protest

Amid a rise in leopard attacks, discontent is brewing among the locals. Over 50 Aarey residents protested against the forest department near Sunil maidan at Film City on Thursday night. Forest officials on night duty assured the protesters that the department was taking all measures to trap the ‘rogue' leopard. The locals also demanded more cages to be set up inside Aarey.