Lucknow, June 4 (IANS) A leopard strayed into a residential area in Uttar Pradesh’s Deoria district and mauled six people Friday, officials said.
The leopard strayed into Dohini village of Deoria, about 300 km from Lucknow, where it attacked some residents. The injured villagers are being treated at a hospital where the condition of two is stated to be critical.
Efforts are now being made to trap the big cat.
‘Taking into account the aggressive nature of the leopard, we have sought assistance from forest officials and wildlife experts from Lucknow to trap the animal,’ Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Amar Bahadur told reporters.
‘The leopard has triggered panic among the residents of Dohini who have been instructed to stay in groups. We have rushed several teams of forest officials to the village for carrying out combing operations,’ he added.
As there is no forest area in Deoria, officials believe the leopard either came from forest areas of adjoining districts or from Bihar.
‘It appears that the leopard lost its way… We believe the animal came from the forest of Gorakhpur or Maharajganj districts of Uttar Pradesh or Bihar,’ said Bahadur.
