TANAHUN, Nov 20: Leopard terror has increased in and around Bandipur in the last few days. According to the local residents, leopards were seen at different places in Bandipur in the evening.
Last Wednesday night, a leopard killed a calf of a cow raised by Sita Bhattarai, a local of Bandipur Rural Municipality-5, Yampaphant. “People were talking about how the leopard had been roaming in the area for three or four days. The leopard entered the barn and attacked the calf and killed it,” she said.
Leopard menace in Tanahu
She said that she had informed the Division Forest Office about the incident immediately. The office has also agreed to provide relief of Rs 30,000 after the cow calf was killed in a leopard attack.
According to Komal Raj Kafle, chief of the Division Forest Office, the habitat of leopards has increased with the number of bushes growing in the forest. “This is the breeding season of leopards. Therefore, as leopards give birth to the cubs, they come out in search of food. Thus, we should be cautious,” he said.
Similarly, Kafle said that as the water resources in the forest are depleting, the leopards that come to the settlements in search of water can attack children when they see one nearby. “If people can understand the nature and behavior of leopards, it will help a lot to prevent future accidents. Therefore, we have been making the people aware from time to time,” he added.
