New Delhi, March 27 -- Two adult male leopards were captured in separate incidents on Thursday morning in the Dalgaon and Kathal Dhura tea gardens, easing concerns among residents.
In the first incident, a leopard was caught in a cage set up in the S/2-3 section of Dalgaon Tea Garden in Alipurduar's Falakata block. Tea garden workers had been noticing the presence of the leopard for some time and fearing for their safety, requested the Forest department to take action. Responding to their concerns, the Dalgaon Range under the Jalpaiguri Forest Division installed a cage baited with a goat. Early Thursday morning, the leopard was successfully trapped. Upon receiving the news, forest officials from Dalgaon Range arrived at the site, conducted a preliminary health assessment, and later released the leopard into the wild.
Meanwhile, around 9 am, another leopard was captured in the Kathal Dhura Tea Garden of Nagrakata block. The animal had been entering nearby villages at night, preying on livestock and causing panic.
Two days earlier, forest officials from Khunia Range had placed a baited trap in Section 16 of the tea garden. The leopard was successfully caught on Thursday morning.
Forest personnel transferred it to the Lataguri Nature Interpretation Center for medical evaluation. "After initial treatment, the leopard will be released into the Gorumara Forest," said Sajal Kumar De, Range Officer of Khunia Range.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.