Officials get flak for failing to rescue leopard

UDAIPUR: Officials of the forest department faced public criticism for failing to rescue a leopard which was spotted at Selu village near Eiswal, some 22 kilometer away from Udaipur city on Tuesday morning.

Though the villagers, who spotted the leopard, claimed that it was perhaps hit by some vehicle, officials said that mutual struggle between leopards had been the cause of injury and death of the 6-year-old female leopard. The animal was spotted sitting on the road by locals on Tuesday after which the forest department was informed.

When people started gathering in large numbers to see the injured beast, it shifted and hid behind the rocks on the sideways. The rescue team arrived and tranquillized the leopard but one of the men who wasn't from the rescue team jumped into the narrow space between the rocks and held the leopard in his hands.

Since there wasn't enough space to stand, the man lost his balance and dropped the leopard. On falling down, the animal got more injured and died before it could be taken for treatment.