In a spot: Leopard runs loose as animal space shrinks in Telangana

HYDERABAD: Amid rising leopard-human conflict in Telangana, a former forest official advised caution and said culling of the animal is not the solution. Surprisingly, the state forest department's wildlife wing has no database on this conflict.
While the incidence of big cat straying into industrial areas, residential colonies, universities and other human habitations is on the rise, wildlife experts blame it on habitat destruction, growing population and people occupying forest tracts.
Former principal chief conservator of forests and retired IFS officer P Raghuveer said leopards only eat stray dogs on the streets. "Population of leopards has not reached to a level that culling should be taken up. There are examples like Sanjay Gandhi National Park in Mumbai where leopards and humans co-exist," he told TOI.
He said habitat destruction and lack of prey were key to rising instances of leopards straying into human habitations.
There were a few instances reported in Uttarakhand where leopards were found picking up children. In Telangana or Andhra Pradesh, we have never seen such a situation. Leopards can thrive even outside the forest areas as they are good at hiding and camouflaging in hillocks or boulders," Former principal chief conservator of forests and retired IFS officer P Raghuveer explained.
He said wild boars are culled in Telangana. "Nilgai culling is taken up in some parts of India. The best option is to tranquilise, capture and release them in forest. The National Tiger Conservation Authority has given clear guidelines when to declare an animal a man-eater. There are certain standard operating procedures which need to be followed scrupulously," Raghuveer said.
Recently, Kawal Tiger Reserve officials said an analysis of pugmarks and scat had revealed that there could be 80 leopards in the tiger reserve.
On December 16, a leopard created a scare as it ventured into Hetero Drugs' manufacturing plant at Kazipally industrial estate in Sangareddy district. It was tranquilised and released into the wild at Mannanur in Amrabad Tiger Reserve after five days of observation.
A leopard was spotted in the forest fringe villages of Medepalli in Enkoor mandal in Khammam district on December 5. Cowherds who noticed the wild animal alerted the forest officials.
There have been instances of road kills too involving leopards. On December 1, a speeding vehicle ran over a big cat on NH-44 at Polkampally in Mahbubnagar district. In another hit-and-run incident on September 15, a leopard was killed by a speeding vehicle in Sadashivnagar mandal in Kamareddy district.
Leopard poaching incidents were also reported from the state. On October 22, six persons were arrested in Bhupalpally for possessing leopard skin.