On early Sunday, a leopard was spotted roaming near a five-star star hotel near JB Nagar in Andheri East. With this in mind, State Forest Department officials have installed 10 automatic cameras as well as three trap cages in the region to safely capture the leopard.
The authorities mentioned that the leopard was spotted by the watchman of the aforementioned hotel as it was trying to climb the wall of an abandoned warehouse nearby. It is said that pugmarks were also spotted on the boundary wall, giving some idea of where the animal may have headed.
Upon hearing of the spotting, dedicated rescue teams from the State Forest Department and the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) scanned the region which includes some small industrial buildings as well as residences in addition to abandoned warehouses. Authorities predict that the abandoned warehouse may have been the leopard’s home for several months.
“Once sighted, the images of this animal will be compared with camera trappings of leopards documented earlier. If there is a match, the last known location of the leopard will be known,” an official said.
A survey conducted by the Forest Department revealed that there are a total of 47 leopards in and around SGNP particularly in areas like Aarey, Godhbunder village, Nagla block, Bombay Veterinary College, and IIT-Bombay.
Leopards have been spotted in densely populated areas before as they stray away from their natural habitat. Authorities have previously been successful in capturing the leopards and rehabilitating them in their natural habitat, though cases of leopard sightings have increased.
Given that these are wild animals, there’s a certain degree of fear among the populace. However, the Forest Department clearly has to do more to make sure leopards are not found straying away into populated areas.
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