In hunt for leopards, lion caged!

02-07-2008

In hunt for leopards, lion caged!

Times of India

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Daily/skins/TOI/navigator.asp?Daily=TOIA&login=royalenclave

 

Talala (Bhavnagar): Forest department officials tried to cage two leopards with a live bait here last week, but went home with a trapped lion instead. The leopards, who have been creating havoc in this lion territory, have since been making a kill a day and have even attacked a month-old baby.

 

According to sources, villagers of Sangodra Gir, 7 km off Talala, have been trying in vain to ward off these leopards for quite some time. They have to keep awake at night to protect themselves and their cattle. "After repeated requests, the forest department did come with contraptions. But, a lion got caught in the cage. Happy that their catch was bigger, officials left, with the leopards still on loose," one of the villagers said.

 

"They (leopards) have made the eastern side of our village outskirts their home. We continue to live in terror. We have lost five new-born cattle in the past week after the officials left with the lion. And, one attacked a month-old baby too," said a villager. Villagers have made fresh pleas to the department, hoping that this time the right 'cause of terror' is caged.