NASHIK: The city is witnessing an increasing number of leopard attacks at various spots, especially near sugarcane fields. Within four days, two girls lost their lives to leopard attacks. Earlier, a leopard attacked a teenager near Jamal Sanatorium, Deolali Camp. However, he got saved as he was inside a rickshaw.
On 30th September, a leopard killed a five-year-old girl in Wadgaon village. On 3rd October, another leopard killed a four-year-old girl in Dhagur village (Dindori) while she was playing in a soyabean field. The recent cases have instilled fear among the residents as many have witnessed frequent leopard sightings.
Even though the Dhagur and Wadgaon Village are only 10 Km apart, they fall under the different forest divisions. Thus the respective forest division has installed cases in the area to trap the leopards. The forest department’s east division set up four cages in Dhagur village (Dindori), and the west division has installed three cages in Wadgaon to trap the leopard.
The forest department has come up with various initiatives to spread awareness among the villages to prevent themselves from leopard attacks. The villagers shouldn’t step out alone at night. Two to three people should travel together at night and ensure that they keep producing some sound to keep the leopards away.
They can play music on their phone or use ghungurus because the leopards in close proximity will get alerted and run away. Also, villagers should pay special attention to kids and not let them wander alone in the fields. Earlier, people used to live in villages, but now, everybody stays in their own fields. They should fence their house, fields and create a proper compound in front of their house to stay safe from attacks. When it comes to cattle, they should seal their cattle shed to prevent any leopard attack.
