Help, there is a leopard in my lounge!

Led by the director of the local Chattbir zoo, Vinod Sharma, this team tranquilised and captured the cat alive and took it to the zoo at the end of tense, four-hour operation. But this feline excursion is not an isolatedcase. Forest officials believe that the leopard may have come from the Morni forest area, around 10 km from Panchkula. This forest is situated in the Shivalik foothills which stretches over an area of 3,000 sq km. The last animal census conducted in this region had revealed that there were 18 panthers here, but according to more recent information, Morni and the adjoining Kalesar, have around 30 panthers.

The villagers, especially those residing in the area, say that there have been several instances of leopards making off with the dogs and cattle of the area. Only last year in March, a leopard was shot dead after it injured three people in Takipur village across Siswan bridge in the Mullanpur area.

The wildlife officials say that they have recorded other visitations of the leopard in neighbouring Punjab in the Ropar (village Garbagha), Sangrur (village Fatehgarh Bhadson), Gurdaspur (Dhar), Hoshiarpur (Hajipur) and Kapurthala (Begowal) districts between November 1995 and January this year.

But this isthe first time that the animal has penetrated this deep into the city. Wildlife officials differ on the reason for these visitations. R.D. Jakati, Chief Wildlife Warden, Haryana, feels such movement is normal.

“Panthers are known to live close to human habitation. This visit is, thus, a normal feature. The cat was perhaps following some stray dogs which led it into the township.”

But H.S. Sohal, Chandigarh’s Chief Wildlife Warden, has another explanation: “The panther may have descended to the plains as it is warmer here. It may be escaping a spell of cold weather.” A wildlife biologist at the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehra Dun, however, disagrees with this thesis. “The habitat available for wildlife is shrinking everywhere and wild prey is declining. That’s why the leopard comes looking for domestic animals, unlike the tiger and the lion who largely remain confined to their habitat despite the pressure on the prey they feed upon. There has to be something beyond the fact that it is followingits prey or that it’s escaping from the snow,” he says.

A local wildlife enthusiast agrees with this: “Mountain goats, wild pigs and jungle fowl which the leopard preyed on earlier are declining with habitat loss and poaching. That’s why the animal is looking for prey in villages.” But Jakati doesn’t agree: “There’s no shrinkage of habitat.

In fact, the Forest Survey of India has reported a one sq km increase in Haryana’s forest area from 1995 to 1997. This visit can’t be related to destruction of habitat.” Punjab wildlife officials also claim that there’s been an improvement in the habitat and the number of wild animals, including leopards, has gone up. Asserts Punjab Chief Wildlife Warden Gurmeet Singh: “There was a 45 sq km increase in our forest area from 1995 to 1997. We are trying to bring four per cent of our total geographical area under forests, as recommended by the Centre. The animal was just fleeing from a spell of inclement weather. There’s no other reason.”

While the officials havetheir arguments and counter-arguments, there is yet another thesis floating around. There are some who argue that the leopard that had strayed into Panchkula may have been kept illegally in the vicinity of town and had just happened to stray from the place where it had been confined.

But what is the real status of the big cat in the region? According to Jakati, in Haryana, the number of leopards has increased from 25 in 1993 to 30 now.“This is due to strict implementation of Wildlife Amendment Act, 1991. Hunting has been completely banned and the fine varies between Rs 50,000 to Rs one lakh. We have detected 550 wildlife offences last year, the highest in the country,” he says. According to a Shimla-based Himachal Wildlife Department official, the population of leopards in Himachal Pradesh has increased from 533 in 1989 to 821 in 1993. In 1996, it was estimated at 1,000 and could be over 1,100 by now.

Researchers have found more leopard droppings in and around villages than in forests. Says he, “Thesecats know they can feed on the prey in the villages. But if they do so repeatedly, it is a cause for concern.” The villagers residing in the lower Shivaliks, meanwhile, dread these visitations. Says Ram Sukhan, a Siswan resident: “Man-leopard encounters are increasing. There have been many cases of dog and cattle lifting here.

This indicates that its habitat is unable to sustain it. That is why it comes looking for domestic animals.”

Moti Ram, a resident of Kishangarh, : “Dogs have often been lifted, they are a favourite with the leopards. Cattle lifting incidents are also rising. What if the animal someday strikes human beings?”

M.S. Malik, a wildlife expert with the Haryana Wildlife Department, however, feels that these fears are misplaced and somewhat exaggerated. “The animal never attacks human beings unless it is injured or fears attack. The apprehensions of the villagers do not hold.”

However, in 1992, two children were believed to have been killed by a leopard in Morni. Though one childwas later recovered alive, another was not and only his clothes were found. “It could have been a case of man-eating. If these visitations continue, such incidents can’t be discounted,” cautions a local wildlife enthusiast.

Just a week ago, M.S. Malik, the wildlife expert with Haryana, himself spotted a leopard in Bir Shikargah, about 7 km from Pinjore. Another cat was spotted in Madhana on the Morni road. Says Kirpal Singh, a resident of Garbagha, Ropar: “It’s all very well for the forest officials to talk about the need to protect the leopard, but we have to bear the brunt of the presence of these animals. Who knows when the animal will attack us?”

Man versus Beast. That has been the story of civilisation as we know it. As human communities expand and increasingly encroach into regions once inhabited by animals, the danger of attacks from these besieged beasts is a very real one. Striking a balance between the need to ensure the safety of human communities and the need to conserve our wildlife, iswhat rational ecological management is all about.