A 4-year-old girl was killed after she was taken away by a leopard on Saturday evening in Udhampur district of Jammu and Kashmir. The incident unfolded between 7-8pm, sending shockwaves through the community.
As soon as the information reached the Udhampur control room, a team was dispatched to the area in a race against time to locate and rescue the young victim.
Rakesh Sharma, Range Officer of the Jammu and Kashmir Wildlife Department in Udhampur, said, “Between 7-8pm, a 4-year-old girl was taken away by a leopard. As we got the information, we dispatched teams from Udhampur control room. We are here to ensure that such incidents don’t occur in the future.”
“This is a very unfortunate incident, and we will do all the help possible to the victim’s family,” he added.
The locals later recovered her mauled body two kilometres away from her house in Upper Banjala village of Panchari tehsil in the district, said Sharma.
“After getting information about the leopard taking away a small girl, our teams launched a search operation but unfortunately we found her dead,” the officer said.
“We launched a massive search operation to catch the wild leopard and soon we will capture it. We have prepared the file of compensation for the victim’s family. Proper compensation should be given to them as soon as possible,” he said.
Local residents were urged to remain cautious, especially during early morning and late evening hours, as these are times when wild animals, including leopards, are known to be more active.
Sharma highlighted the importance of wildlife awareness campaigns and issued a reminder to the local community, saying, “During our awareness campaigns, we do request people that during dawn and dusk, don’t let children, women, and senior citizens go alone.”
This incident serves as a sombre reminder of the coexistence challenges faced in regions where humans and wildlife share their habitat.
