Six-year-old girl killed in leopard attack in Nashik

NASHIK: A six-year-old girl was killed in a leopard attack in Pimplad village of Nashik district's Trimbakeshwar taluka on Thursday evening.
Forest department officials said that the girl and her mother were on their way home when the animal suddenly attacked.
The child was seriously injured and taken to a nearby rural hospital, where she later succumbed to injuries.
After they received information about the incident, forest officials rushed to the spot.
The attack created panic among villagers, who have demanded that the authorities erect cages in their area to trap leopards.
Forest officials said they are in the process of installing such traps. Five cages are to be set up in various locations in villages to catch leopards.
This is the second such incident of a child being killed by a wild predator in a month. On March 14, a three-year-old girl was killed in a leopard attack at Brahmanwade village, also in Trimbakeshwar taluka.
On December 24 last year, a six-year-old boy had died after being attacked by a leopard at Velunje village in the same taluka.
In that incident, the leopard had grabbed the child from the verandah of his house and dragged him into a neighbouring forest area.
There have been several sightings of leopards in various parts of Nashik district.
Officials pointed out that due to the large tracts of forest land in Trimbakeshwar, leopards are frequently spotted here.
They added that leopards are also regularly seen in the sugarcane belts of Dindori, Niphad and Sinnar talukas of Nashik district.