Woman, 55, Mauled To Death By Leopard In Uttarakhand, Wild Cat Shot Dead

A 55-year-old woman was killed in a leopard attack in Pauri Garhwal district's Badi village under the Kot block here on Tuesday afternoon, officials said.

The leopard was later shot dead by forest department hunters after it charged at officials and villagers, they said.

According to local residents, the woman, identified as Prabha Devi, went to the fields near her house around noon to collect fodder for her cattle. When she did not return, her husband went searching for her. He found her torso and blood stains in the fields, after which he raised an alarm and alerted the villagers.

The village is situated about 8-9 kilometres from the district headquarters. Upon receiving information, a team from the forest department, along with official hunters, reached the spot.

A joint search operation was launched by the forest department, revenue officials, police and villagers to locate the remaining parts of the body.

According to the forest department officials, the search team found the woman's body inside an abandoned, dilapidated structure located about 200 metres away from where the torso was found.

The leopard, which was present near the body, growled at the search party and hid inside an adjacent structure covered in bushes.

Garhwal Divisional Forest Officer Mahatim Yadav told PTI that the leopard suddenly rushed out of the bushes and charged aggressively at the gathered crowd.

"Sensing an immediate threat to life, the department's hunters opened fire in self-defence, killing the leopard on the spot," Yadav said, adding that a post-mortem examination will be conducted on the carcass.

Senior officials, including the local sub-divisional magistrate and police personnel were also present.

Officials said initial evidence indicates that this was the same leopard that killed the woman, a confirmation will be made only after the post-mortem.

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