Panic spread among the residents of Hindalco Colony on Kakati road near Belagavi after some residents spotted a leopard in the jungle behind the Hindalco industrial unit on Friday.
Some residents called the police on Friday morning, saying they had spotted a large animal with dots, moving along the fence of the industry campus. They also complained that the animal had been spotted twice at night. Police Commissioner D.C. Rajappa instructed officers to check CCTV footage available on the campus and informed the Forest Department.
A team of forest officials rushed to Hindalco campus and spoke to residents. They also sent for a team to lay a trap for the leopard. But till evening, there was no sign of the animal.
However, some residents of the area complained that the Forest Department had not invited the right kind of experts to catch the wild animal. The persons that forest officers have brought are residents of Rukmini Nagar who catch pigs for a living, said Purushottam Rao, a resident of Kakati road.
Mr. Rajappa said the scare had subsided as the animal had moved away into the jungles beyond the city.