Exactly a week after a > leopard was netted in a dramatic ten-hour operation at a school here, the captured leopard has escaped from its cage at the rescue centre of Bannerghata Biological Park here on Monday.
The leopard is believed to have squeezed itself through the treatment cage. Over 50 forest officials, split into 6 teams, have been scouring around the forests. Villagers have been intimated and warned.
Forest officials said that if the leopard has slipped into the nearby Bannerghata national park, which is spread over 100 sq.km., it might be difficult to track the feline. The around-4-year-old male leopard was described as being agitated and restless after its capture.
Officials were hesitant to release it to the wild because of its disabilities - >a missing canine and a cloudy eye. This is the second animal to escape the rescue centre this year. >In January, a Himalayan Black bear - got from Tripura - had scaled the walls. It was going 48 hours later in a nearby village.
However, this is the first time a leopard has escaped from the rescue centre since it was established in 2002. The area houses 21 more leopards in cages.
Video: Watch - Leopard attacks conversationist
An account of some of the previous incidents of leopard sightings:
February 17, 2015: A leopard was run over by an unidentified vehicle on NICE Road, near Kanakapura Road turn-off
August 22, 2014: An adult leopard was caught at Dasanahalli on Magadi Road on the outskirts of the city. For over a month, the leopard was frequently sighted in the area, and had apparently killed five livestock animals and three dogs
June 2014: A leopard spotted at an apartment complex as well as in the school on Kanakapura Road
May 2014: Another sighting at an apartment complex close to the Electronics City turn-off of NICE Road
February 2014: Leopard trapped near Tavarakere village on the outskirts of the city. Traps were laid after residents had sighted three leopards in the area
