UDAIPUR: A leopard mauled a four-year-old girl to death in Peepad village under Losing gram panchayat in Gogunda block of Udaipur district on Monday.
The child, daughter of Ekaram, was left on the roadside by her mother, Gopi Bai, with their son while she was returning home after work under the NREGA scheme. She had gone to the field leaving both the children near the boundary fencing.
“A leopard came from the forest and took the girl away. Someone who was passing by saw the leopard carry something in its mouth. When the woman returned to pick the kids, she found the girl missing. Hearing her cries, people gathered and found that the leopard had taken the girl away,” DFO Balaji Kari told TOI.
Forest officials and police teams reached the spot and launched a search along with over 200 villagers. They found the leopard sitting on the girl's body deep inside the woods. They scared the beast away and rescued the body which was shifted to a mortuary.
“The autopsy was done on Tuesday. We visited the area and met the child's family. An ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh, as per government norms, was given to her father,” Balaji said.
The forest department has set up two cages and two camera traps on strategic locations to catch the leopard. Ten forest guards have been deployed in the area. “We have cautioned the villagers not to roam around for some days as there are chances that the animal may come back as it has tasted human flesh. Children and women are soft targets for wild animals,” the official said.