Subscribe Now! Get features like
Mysuru
A farmer was injured in an attack by a leopard in Periyapatna taluk of Karnataka’s Mysuru on Sunday while he was working in his agriculture field, forest department officials said.
The 45-year-old injured farmer from Kellur village has been admitted to Periyapatna taluk government hospital but he is out of danger, a senior official said.
The leopard attacked the farmer, Rajesh, when he was working in his agriculture field alone,” Mysuru circle chief conservator of forests (CCF) Malathi Priya said. “The farmer sustained injuries in an ear and head in the leopard attack. He is currently undergoing treatment at Periyapatna taluk government hospital but is out of danger,” Priya said.
The CCF said the forest department would bear the hospitalisation expenditure and provide “suitable compensation” to the farmer.
Soon after the attack, villagers staged a protest, asking the forest department to catch the leopard before attacks more people. Forest officers rushed to the spot and promised to take steps to catch the leopard.
Priya also said an operation is going on in Nanjanagudu taluk, , where a tiger was spotted in CCTV footage. ”We expect to capture it soon.”
The forest officers launched an operation to capture the tiger on November 30 after residents of Kadakola on the outskirts of Mysuru spotted a tiger at night. The tiger’s movement was recorded on CCTV cameras on the TVS factory premises in Kadakola.
Priya said, “The operation is going on in Chikkakanya, Doddakanya Bathahalli, and Sinduvalli villages in Nanjanagudu taluk. The department is using elephants, drones, and trap cameras.” She said the big cat has not attacked any humans or cattle so far. “However, we launched the operation to catch it to prevent a possible attack.”
The Mysuru district has witnessed an escalation in human-wildlife conflicts in recent months, causing concern among villagers residing beside forests and wildlife sanctuaries. On November 24, a tiger killed a 52-year-old woman in Ballurhundi village in Nanjanagudu taluk, triggering a protest by villagers to catch the tiger. Later, it was captured and shifted to the animal rehabilitation centre of Mysuru Zoo in Koorgalli.