A male adult leopard that had been intermittently moving within the Pune Airport premises since late April has been darted and captured safely, forest officials said on Friday.
The feline was captured following a multi-agency operation led by the Forest Department, in collaboration with RESQ Charitable Trust, the Indian Air Force and Pune Airport authorities, they said.
The presence of the big cat was first confirmed on April 28. On November 19, the leopard was spotted once again.
Forest officials said the wild animal utilised an extensive network of underground tunnels, dense vegetation and low-footfall zones within the airport premises to move in and out of the area.
Given the vast and sensitive nature of the airport landscape, capture efforts posed challenges. Continuous monitoring was undertaken using camera traps, live cameras and trap cages, though the leopard avoided entering cages, officials said in a release.
On December 4, officials were informed that the leopard had entered the underground tunnel network. Tunnel exits were then closed and more live surveillance cameras were installed to track its movement within the confined space.
A 30-member team comprising personnel from the Forest Department, RESQ trust and the Indian Air Force guided the leopard into an approximately 80-foot-long tunnel, the release said. The leopard was then tranquilised by wildlife veterinarian Dr Gourav Mangla, it said.
"The leopard had damaged both live cameras, and I had to take a clean shot from a very difficult angle in a confined tunnel space. The successful darting was possible only because the teams held their positions calmly and executed the plan exactly as designed," said Dr Mangla.
The leopard has since recovered and is currently housed at the Transit Treatment Centre at Bavdhan, Pune, for further observation and assessment.
Mahadev Mohite, Deputy Conservator of Forests, Pune Division, said coordination among the various agencies led to the capture of the big cat. Officials said no human injuries occurred during the operation and that airport operations continued without disruption.
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