HYDERABAD: A leopard has left Forest and Police Department officials sleepless in Hyderabad, after it ventured out of its dwelling in the forest and strayed all the way to Kattedan, located on the way to the RGI Airport. Despite massive tracing efforts, spanning several hours since Thursday morning, the big cat remains elusive.
More than 30 officials from the Forest and Police Departments, including veterinarians from the Nehru Zoological Park, are camping at open farmland spread across 40 acres at Kattedan to trace the leopard. Reportedly, the leopard had jumped into the farmland, which has a wall around it. Speaking to Express, Rangareddy District Forest Officer Bheema Naik said that two trap cages and 25 CCTV cameras have been set up in the farmland to track its movement. The police deployed drone cameras on Thursday afternoon in hopes of spotting the big cat. Three special teams have also been formed under Shamshabad Forest Divisional Officer Ch Shivaiah.
Forest Officer Naik further said, “The open land has many patches of thick vegetation, providing the leopard a good cover. We have not been able to trace it yet. It might try and escape at night using the same route it had used to enter the city in the morning. A team, including a veterinarian, will be camped here at night.” The leopard was first spotted by some passers-by on Thursday morning, resting in the middle of a road near the Kattedan industrial area. As pictures and videos of the wild animal began making rounds on social media, the Forest Department dispatched a team comprising Nehru Zoo and Rangareddy forest officials to the spot. Local police joined them.
Palm civet at Golconda
Hours before the leopard was sighted at Kattedan, the Forest Department officials had received distress calls claiming that a ‘black panther’ was lurking near the Noorani mosque in Golconda. Images and videos of the ‘panther’ on prowl surfaced on Wednesday night. However, upon analysing the videos and images, forest officials suspected the creature was not a black panther. When they reached Golconda, they found an Asian palm civet wandering about in the mosque. The civet was rescued by the forest officials without having to use a tranquiliser.
