A leopard that staryed into village and perched atop a peepal tree in Netivandlapalle in Veeraballi mandal of Kadapa District, created panic among the residents. The animal was trapped after being shot by a tranquiliser gun by staff of forest department rescue team after a six-hour-long effort.
Villagers going for work in agricultural fields around 8 a.m. were panic-stricken on hearing a leopard’s cry and ran helter skelter on spotting it in bushes. As the villagers shouted loudly out of fear, the leopard climbed a peepal tree and perched itself atop a branch.
On being alerted by the villagers, Veeraballe sub-inspector of police Bhakthavatsalam and Rayachoti Rural circle inspector Prabhakar Babu rushed to the village, took stock of the situation and informed forest department officials. A Forest Department rescue team was rushed and it immobilised the leopard by shooting it with a tranquiliser gun.
Later, forest department personnel brought the wild animal down, kept it in a cage and shifted it to Sri Venkateswara Zoological Park at Tirupati at around 3 p.m. The leopard was two-year-old and might have ventured into the village from nearby Seshachalam forest area, the forest officials said. The villagers heaved a sigh of relief as it did not harm any person or cattle.
Correction:
The name of the wild animal was inadvertantly given as cheetah, which is extinct in India, and has since been changed. It was a leopard.
