Gujarat: Two children attacked in Surat last week; Forest dept replaces iron cages with fibre traps to catch leopards
The decision to replace iron cages has been taken as the fibre cages are closed from all sides so the animal will not be able to see people and get agitated.
The decision to replace iron cages has been taken as the fibre cages are closed from all sides so the animal will not be able to see people and get agitated. (File photo) 
The decision to replace iron cages has been taken as the fibre cages are closed from all sides so the animal will not be able to see people and get agitated. (File photo)
Alarmed by leopard attacks in Mandvi taluka of Surat district, the forest department has replaced iron cages with fibre traps to catch the big cats. So far, seven such cages have been put up in the area, officials said.
The decision to replace iron cages has been taken as the fibre cages are closed from all sides so the animal will not be able to see people and get agitated. It has small gaps for air circulation though, Forest Range Officer Upendrasinh Raoji of Mandvi taluka said.
A four-year-old girl was killed, while a seven-year-old boy was injured in two separate incidents of leopard attacks which took place in Patal and Areth villages of Surat district in the first week of January this year. The seven-year-old boy identified as Lalu is still undergoing treatment at the New Civil Hospital, while Shivani Mahala succumbed to her injuries.
The forest officials claimed that another minor boy was attacked by a leopard in Tuket village, but he is out of danger.
Raoji said, “Around 10 leopards are roaming around in the sugarcane fields in villages of the taluka. In fact, at present there might be more than 40 leopards in different talukas of Surat district.”
“Following the two incidents of leopard attacks in Areth and Patal villages, we installed around seven fibre cages in and around the area. Earlier, we would put hen or goat as bait in the cages, but in the new fibre cages, we put both. Moreover, we sprinkle water used to wash fish on the cage to lure leopards.”
A meeting was also convened by the forest department on Tuesday where an action plan was chalked out to overcome human-animal conflict. The meeting was chaired by Surat district collector Dhaval Patel and attended by representatives from different Sugarcane Co-operative Societies, among others.
“Since this is the harvesting season for sugarcane, a large number of labourers from Tapi, Dangs and neighbouring districts of Maharashtra have come and settled here with their families. On Monday evening, a leopard was sighted by some villagers in Khodanka, where the big cat had killed a goat. Our officials have also spotted the pug marks of the animal. A cage has been laid,” Deputy Conservator of Forest (DCF) Puneet Nayyar said.
The district collector Tuesday advised the sugar mill representatives at the meeting to make sure that camps for farm labourers are set up near the villages and not in sugarcane fields and also requested them not to allow the labourers to work at nights in the fields.
The district collector also told the mill representatives to make sure that the labourers do not throw leftover non-vegetarian food in open places outside the camp area, as it attracts leopards. At night, they should not go out alone and must always carry torches. When they spot any leopard, they should put on the torch and direct the light on the face of the animal.
The forest officials also said that 10 night vision cameras have also been installed to track the movement of the leopards. Besides, awareness camps have also been organised in 10 villages in Mandvi taluka to make the labourers aware about what to do and what not to do after sighting a leopard, said Nayyar.
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