A two-year-old male leopard which had found sanctuary inside the Central Sericultural Research and Training Institute (CSRTI) campus, was trapped by the Forest Department and shifted to Bandipur on Friday.
The “resident” leopard was being regularly sighted by the local people at Srirampura for the past one month with some saying that he would loiter freely or rest atop the CSRTI compound wall without the fear of humans.
Responding to complaints, the Forest Department had placed three cages and waited for the leopard to walk in but he eluded them for nearly a month. “This morning my staff found the cage shut and ventured closer only to find the leopard trapped shut inside it,” said V. Karikalan, Deputy Conservator of Forests, Mysuru.
The leopard was of robust health having fed on local stray dogs and was shifted to the Moolehole range of Bandipur National Park, he added.
The CSRTI campus being vast – spread over 100 acres – there is ample vegetation and the leopard had found sanctuary in it. Besides, the campus abuts the Chamundi Hills which is a reserve forest and a natural wildlife habitat. “As this is a sub-adult I suspect it is part of a family including its mother and hence there could be more leopards in the vicinity,” said Mr. Karikalan who has directed the staff to monitor the area and place a few more cages. Despite its presence in the campus area for one month it had not harmed anybody.
This is not the first time that a leopard had found sanctuary in a factory or campus of any institute in Mysuru. The authorities had trapped a leopard at the BEML campus a few years ago while another leopard was found impaled by the iron-grill of the factory compound wall. The abandoned campus of the Mandya National Paper Mills close to Mysuru was occupied by a leopard while Infosys was also visited by one four years ago before it was tranquilized and shifted to the forest.
Mr. Karikalan said this is the 21st leopard being trapped in human habitation in Mysuru range in the last 18 months and fourth since April.
