Locals in fear as leopard mauls over 3 dozen animals in Himachal's Hamirpur

Hamirpur: A leopard on the prowl in Barsar revenue sub division here has left residents living in fear after it mauled over three dozen animals including dogs, in recent days, officials said.

Reports reaching here said that the leopard was spotted in Sujanpur, Bhoranj and Nadaun areas, prompting locals to approach the Forest Department to capture the wild animal.

In a latest incident, the leopard was seen in Saheli village of Badsar subdivision in the evening forcing villagers to hide in their houses during the evening hours. A CCTV footage of the animal entering a house has also gone viral on social media.

Some of the locals, Pawan Kumar, Sudhir Sharma, Nitin Sharma, Dheeraj Sharma and Rohit Thakur urged the forest department to immediately swing into action and capture the leopard by placing cages in the village to prevent any untoward incident.

The villagers said that they are scared to send their children to school or tend to their fields, fearing the leopard's presence.

Forest department officials said that they have received complaints from people regarding the matter.

A CCTV footage of the leopard has also surfaced and efforts are afoot to capture the leopard, they added.

Meanwhile, officials have asked the residents to be careful while going to the fields and the department has sent a team to the area to monitor the leopard.