Gwalior (Madhya Pradesh): Madhya Pradesh Forest department has issued an alert in more than a dozen villages in Gwalior district after a video showing two leopards roaming on highway came to fore on Wednesday. The leopards have been spotted near Karhiya village instilling fear among the local residents.
Gwalior District Forest Officer (DFO), Brijendra Shrivastava said, “There is an environment of fear in areas surrounding Karhiya village after movement of leopards was spotted near forest. The movements have been spotted near more than a dozen villages. We have seen the video and have issued an alert in all the concerned villages. A team of forest department officials has also been stationed in alerted areas.”
The DFO further informed, “Karhiya's boundary touches with Madhav National Park in Shivpuri district, due to which leopard movement is spotted in Gwalior. Also, during winters leopards tend to enter residential areas. The forest department has took cognisance of the matter and is taking every possible step to stop the leopards from causing any damage to the locals.”
Locals have been advised to not step out of their houses after evening and to go to forests for work during daytime in groups. They are also advised to carry a torch with them in case they have to step out during nighttime.
It is noteworthy that the villagers had been complaining about leopards roaming free around Karhiya for the past month. However, no actions were taken by the administration due to lack of evidence. Recently, three people claimed to have seen leopards in Golarghati. The passersby also managed to capture the beast on camera, after which forest department officials took action.
