A 22-year-old woman died after being attacked by a leopard in Durgam village, 30 km from Gudiatham town in Vellore on Wednesday.
According to the forest officials, S. Anjali is among the dead. His parents K. Shivalingam, 52 and S. Padma, 47 were farmers of the village forming part of Melmoil village panchayat under KV Kuppam block of Vellore district. Durgam village is situated on the edge of the Anup Reserve Forest (RF) in the hills on the Tamil Nadu – Andhra Pradesh border.
The incident took place around 3 pm, “The victim had gone from his house to collect small pieces of firewood near RF when the leopard suddenly attacked him. Efforts are being made to catch the animal,’ said R Vinova, Forest Division Officer (Gudiatham). Hindu.
Preliminary investigation revealed that Durgam village is a remote hill settlement with about 50 families, most of whom are farmers. Forest officials said some neighbors shouted for help when they saw the victim being dragged into the forest. After more residents reached the spot, the leopard left the victim and fled into the dense forest.
Acting on the alert, KV Kuppam police and Gudiatham zone forest officials reached the spot. The body has been sent to Government Medical College Hospital, Vellore for post-mortem. KV Kuppam police have registered a case. Vellore District Forest Officer (DFO) Guruswami Dabbala was also informed about the incident. The forest department has formed a special team to arrest the animals.
published – December 18, 2024 at 11:25 am IST