BANGALORE, Republic of India. Five people have been injured during an attempt to capture a leopard that wandered into a school in southern India, a wildlife official has said.
Photos of the incident in Bangalore show the animal prowling around the closed school and trying to maul forestry officials as well as a wildlife activist and others who came too close.
Ravi Ralph, chief wildlife officer in Karnataka state, said the leopard appeared to have entered the school from a nearby forest by jumping over the compound’s wall.
The animal is seen attacking a man lying on the ground who uses his hand to defend himself. The cat is also shown sinking its claws into another man’s leg as he tries to climb a gate.
“The leopard was caught and caged after a four-hour operation, when it was trapped in a room with one tranquilliser shot through a wire-meshed ventilator,” Ralph said.
The animal was taken to Bangalore’s Bannerghatta zoo for observation, but was reportedly later released into the forest. Its victims were treated for minor injuries.
Leopards number between 12,000 to 14,000, according to a national survey published last year. They are increasingly venturing into populated areas as their habitats become depleted.
A leopard killed a five-year-old boy in the courtyard of his home in central India in 2014.
Video footage from Mumbai in 2013 showed a leopard creeping into an apartment block foyer and snatching a small dog.
Credit: The Guardian (UK)
