The forest officials launched an operation to capture a leopard that attacked a devotee at the Someswara Swamy temple in Kuppam on Tuesday morning and escaped into the nearby forest.
According to information, the priest reached the temple at around 5 a.m. for the daily rituals. The priest saw the leopard scaling the compound wall when he was unlocking the temple doors. He raised an alarm, but the animal was gone.
The people nearby who reached the temple did not take him seriously, even as the priest kept repeating his version.
At around 10 a.m., the leopard pounced on a devotee when he went to a toilet on the temple premises. The animal was hiding inside the toilet. It escaped by scaling the compound wall of the temple again. The devotee received a minor injury.
Upon information, the forest officials rushed to the spot.
“We have found the pugmarks of the leopard on the temple premises and on the compound wall,” Forest Range Officer (Kuppam) Madan Mohan Reddy said.
The residents living nearby said that a leopard prowling in Kuppam town was unheard of. Even as Kuppam is surrounded by thick forests bordering Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, the buffer zones are at least 8 km away from the town.
The Forest Range Officer said that the leopard might have strayed into Kuppam town from the Tamil Nadu side. “The officials searched the forest areas surrounding the temple. They could hear the leopard grunting. This confirms the presence of the leopard in the area. We have discussed the issue with the higher officials. Steps are being taken to either capture the animal by tranquilising it or drive it away into the forests. The second one is our immediate priority,” he said.
Meanwhile, the forest officials have warned the people of Kuppam not to move alone on the outskirts after dusk.
