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Journalism of Courage
Villages in Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserves buffer zone in Chandrapur district of Maharashtra continued to be terrorised by the problem leopard Saturday.
The leopard attacked Yadav Hari Latewar,50,while he was out to answer natures call near Vaigaon village early in the morning. Some one raised an alarm and villagers rushed and chased away the leopard,but not before it injured Latewar,a guest in the village. He is critical.
The leopard,officials finally admitted after denials over the past few days,is the same that was captured at Sadagah in Saoli on April 7 and released in the core area of TATR. We have to agree,until proved otherwise,that it is the same animal since there is a definite pattern to all the attacks, Mishra said.
Now,PCCF,Wildlife,S W H Naqvi has issued an order to shoot the leopard,a young female,and several teams have been formed to find it.
The villages,meanwhile,appear as if curfewed with people reluctant to leave their homes,sources said.
The release of the problem animal has also raised the heckles of activists,who claim the move and officials claims that different animals were involved in the attacks have increased peoples animosity towards wildlife.
Reacting to the charges,Mishra said,When it was caught,it didn8217;t appear to be a problem animal,causing deliberate attacks. Law says it shouldnt be kept in captivity. So we left it in TATR core area that is considered the best for the animal.
