Leopard kills goats in Mansehra forest

MANSEHRA: A leopard, which had killed a man in Gar Galli forests earlier this month, attacked and killed several goats. “A young boy, who fled after witnessing the leopard, fell into a ravine and suffered injuries,” Sardar Ghulam Mustafa, a former village council nazim told reporters on Tuesday.

Mustafa said that residents had submitted an application with the local police and the divisional wildlife officer to take action, but to no avail. “This leopard which had attacked and killed a man in Katha Shakura Rihari reserved forest earlier this month has now attacked and killed many goats,” he said.

He said that as many as five people had spotted the leopard in area. “The Wildlife Department should ensure that leopard doesn’t come down to the settled areas to attack and injured locals as well herds,” said Mustafa.

When contacted, Divisional Wildlife Officer Taimur Shah denied that the leopard had come down to Gar Galli area and attacked and killed a herd of goats. “The infra-red cameras installed at entry and exit points of the reserved forest didn’t capture any mobility of leopard,” he said. The divisional wildlife officer said that people should not move into reserved forests to avoid being attacked. “We have launched an inquiry to ascertain what exactly had happened,” said Shah.