Thanks to elusive leopard, 22 schools have remained shut in Belagavi

Around 10,000 students have been missing physical classes since August 5

Forest and police personnel during the combing operation at the golf course in Belagavi on Saturday. | Photo Credit: P.K. BADIGER

The continued and futile effort to capture the leopard which is on the loose around Belagavi has affected the functioning of 22 schools in the western parts of the city. Education Department officials estimate that about 10,000 students are affected due to the closure of schools. While some private schools have started online classes, most government schools are yet to do so.

Since the leopard made an appearance in Jadhav Nagar on August 5, the district administration has issued orders to close 22 schools in the neighbourhood. Half of them are State government-run schools.

Forest and police personnel using an elephant to search the leopard at the golf course in Belagavi on Saturday. | Photo Credit: P.K. BADIGER

Most schools have complied with the orders. While some private schools have continued to hold classes after a few days of closure, most of them have been conducting online classes.

In golf course

The leopard is said to be hiding in the golf course. It was seen entering and re-entering the 250-acre green expanse three times over the last three weeks. The course has enough prey such as peacocks, dogs, and rabbits. The golf course is within 2 km of the schools in Hindalga village, the military camp, and areas such as Ganeshpur, Jadhav Nagar, Hanuman Nagar, and Sainik Colony.

Nagaraja Rao, who sends his children to Vanita Vidyalaya, feels their learning has taken a hit. Concurring with him, Mehtab Nawaj, a resident of the camp area, said, “Students have suffered for two years owing to COVID-induced lockdowns. Forcing another lockdown because of the leopard is horrid.”

Make-up classes

Education officers said the lost class hours would be made up. Basavaraj Nalatwad, Deputy Director of Public Instruction, noted that the problem was serious. “We are forced to close schools in the vicinity of the golf course for the safety of children and teachers. But it is affecting the teaching-learning process. We recognise this. I have instructed the block education officers to direct all schools to make up for the lost hours by organising classes during the October holidays,” he said.

Block Education Officer Ravi Bhajantr said wherever possible, teachers have been asked to take online classes. However, teachers said this may not be effective as most students were from poor households that did not have smartphones or enough mobile data packs.

“Teachers have also been asked to send notes to students of higher classes on the phones of their parents. But such measures can not replace offline classes,” said Chandrakat Patil, a teacher in a school near the Sugar Institute area.

Some critical of the operation

Many residents of Belagavi city feel that the Forest Department is taking more time than necessary to capture the leopard which has been in the golf course.

“We keep hearing of officials capturing leopards in operations lasting one or two days. But the Belagavi operation is going on for three weeks and it is difficult to understand why,” said Kirthi Deshpande, a resident of Jadhav Nagar.

“There are several problems with the way the district administration or the Forest Department is handling the situation,” said Ashok Chandaragi, convener of the Kannada Associations of Belagavi. He pointed out that the department was not following the standard operating procedure recommended by the National Tiger Conservation Authority. “First of all, the district administration should block all access to the golf course and avoid crowding at the site. We should realise that when they keep cages with live bait, people should not go and crowd the area. The leopard is within the golf course, a clearly demarcated area. It will be easily caught if Forest Department personnel and police do not crowd the area,’’ he said.

However, others sympathise with the staff. “It is very difficult to venture into the thickly wooded fringes of the golf course where the wild animal is hiding. They are tracking pugmarks, combing the shrubs, cutting down trees, putting up cages with live baits, and setting camera traps. They have also deputed two elephants and four dart shooters. What more can they do?’’ asked Mudassar Ternikar, a social activist.