Fear of unseen leopard  grips villagers in Rangareddy district

HYDERABAD: The death of cattle, allegedly by a wild animal, which the locals claim to be a leopard or a hyena has spread panic among residents of Kadilabavi thanda in Rangareddy district which is just about 60 kilometers away from Hyderabad.

However, when contacted, Janaki Ram, forest divisional officer, Amangal said that there has been no direct sighting of any wild animal. He said that there were some pugmarks but they were not clear enough to ascertain if they were of any wild animal species. However, as the rumour spread thick about citing of a wild animal, the forest officials are on a look out.  

Allegedly as per locals, A Mallaiah, a villager from Arutla village, took his sheep for grazing to Kadilabavi which is 6 km away. He tied about 25 lamb in a small stable and took the adult sheep for grazing into a nearby wooded area. When he returned he saw that all the lamb were dead, raising suspicion that the killing was by a wild animal. However, the Amangal FDO denied any cattle kill incident being reported to the forest department.