Leopard attack in Surat: Man injured while saving calf, brave wife comes to his rescue

A leopard came closer to the cattle and attacked one of the calves. Chaudhary, who was giving water to goats, tried to rescue the calf but the leopard turned to him, caught his head with both its front paws and tried to control him.

Hearing Prakash’s screams, his wife Parvati immediately came out of their house. She hit the leopard on its head repeatedly with an axe, said village sarpanch Soma Chaudhary.

The injured leopard ran into Prakash’s house. Parvati immediately shut the house’s front and back doors, trapping the leopard. She immediately informed the village sarpanch who reached the house with other villagers. Soma Chaudhary informed forest officials about the leopard trapped inside the house.

Vankal range forest officer Hiren Patel said, “We reached the spot along with our staff, shot at the leopard with a dart gun and tranquilised it. We examined the leopard and, on examination, found an injury on his neck and legs. The injured leopard is six years old, and after treatment at the Zankhvav rescue centre, the big cat was taken to the government Veterinary hospital at Navsari for further treatment.”

“Prakash also suffered injuries caused by a leopard on his head, legs and hands and was rushed to the community health centre at Zankhvav in Mangrol and from there, he was shifted to Surat at New Civil Hospital for further treatment. Prakash’s wife Parvati is unhurt and is taking care of husband.”

Village sarpanch Chaudhary said, “The house of Prakash was in the middle of an agricultural field. The family members of Prakash went to other talukas for some work, leaving Prakash and his wife alone in the house. It is for the first time that a leopard attack occurred in our village. Prakash is out of danger but he had suffered injuries caused by nails of a leopard on different parts of his body.”

Sources in the Surat forest department said there are over 22 leopards in the Mangrol taluka of Surat district. The leopards hide among the standing sugarcane crops and attack the cattle of nearby villages.