A leopard, which was first sighted at the remains of an Indo-Portuguese fort on March 29 in Vasai and triggered panic among residents, has been caught by the joint efforts of the Maharashtra Forest department, wildlife NGOs and researchers. Pics/Hanif Patel (Story/Diwakar Sharma)
Updated On: 2024-04-23 04:25 PM IST
Compiled by : Asif Ali Sayed
The officials had installed multiple trap cameras to monitor the movement of the leopard
The big cat initially survived on the stray dogs but, later, it is believed that the leopard was surviving on rodents that are found abundant in the fort
Sources said that the authorities concerned had installed two cages at different locations in the Vasai Fort area to trap the wild cat
Sources within the department told mid-day that they had to realign the cages which they had installed on the premises of majestic Vasai Fort, and this helped in trapping the leopard on the 25th day of the department's efforts
After the wild cat was caged, it was taken to the Range Forest Office (RFO) in Mandvi, Virar East where its medical tests were conducted
Thousands of local fishing communities had been facing difficulties after the first leopard sighting near Vasai Fort, as the authorities concerned had barricaded all the exits to restrict public movement for 12 hours after 7 pm
