Leopard sighting keeps wedding guests away

NT Correspondents

Bengaluru | Mysuru: When leopards are on the prowl, can guests be anywhere in the vicinity? It happened in the city where guests kept away from a wedding on Friday in Kodepalya near Kengeri after a leopard was reportedly sighted in the area. A day prior to this, the half-eaten carcass of a spotted deer was found in the locality, which is close to Turahalli reserve forest.

This triggered unease among guests who chose not to attend the ceremony due to safety concerns. Deepa and Guruprasad finally tied the knot in front of 500 guests when more than 2,000 people were expected to attend.

The kind of the bride and the groom said that food was prepared for a few thousand people, which went waste, adding that booking of the large and expensive wedding hall also seemed unnecessary.

Meanwhile, in Mysuru, conservator of Forests of Mysuru Circle, Malathi Priya said the state government has given permission to 'shoot at sight' a leopard which killed a 20-year-old girl in S. Kebbehundi village of T.Narasipur taluk Wednesday night.

She has also announced a solatium of Rs 7 lakh to the family of Meghana, the victim, and a job on contract basis to the kin in the Forest Department. This happend just weeks after a 20-year-old law student, Manjunath, was killed by a leopard in the same district.

Last week, a leopard was reportedly sighted in Banashankari sixth stage, which is near Turahalli forest area. Another leopard sighting happened near the ITC factory in Chikkajala, some 45 kilometres from Kodepalya. Forest officials said that it was possible that leopard cubs might be also involved.

Same big cat, multiple appearances?

Animal welfare warden Prasanna Kumar said that the same leopard might have been sighted in different areas in Bengaluru several times over the weeks. “It must be the same animal. The reason is simple. Leopards are territorial.

They cover 45 to 50 kilometres in a day, be it an urban or rural area,” he said. “People’s involvement in the area has increased near the Turahalli forest area. In the morning, people go for a walk. It (the leopard) might have got disturbed and is now travelling outside the forest. Moreover, people dispose of waste, such as chicken remains near the forest area. This attracts street dogs and their population has increased. Now, dogs are easy prey for leopards. This is another reason that lures the leopards,” he added.

Kumar said that precious little remained of forest reserves such as Turahalli and that projects like Nice Road were too close to wildlife habitats. It is said that local political leaders have been pressuring forest department officials to find and capture the leopard since the safety of people is at risk. There have been several leopard sightings in Kengeri in past years.