Leopard that fell into a well at Zaran forest colony near Kothari rescued with a cage and released into the forest

Gondpipri (Chandrapur district): A forest department team on Sunday, October 11, safely brought out a leopard that had fallen into a well at the Zaran forest colony of the Forest Development Corporation near Kothari, after a long effort. The animal was then released into dense forest, its natural habitat, Chanda Blast reported.

Forest labourers spotted the leopard in the well in the morning and alerted senior staff, and a team rushed to the spot as residents gathered to watch. To lift the animal out without injuring it, the team lowered a cage into the well, and managed to bring the leopard out at around 12.30 pm.

The operation was carried out under the guidance of assistant conservator of forests Adeshkumar Shendge and Kalpana Chinchkhede, assistant manager of the corporation's forest project. Range forest officer S D Madavi, mobile squad chief Nishant Ghorpade, foresters, forest guards, drivers and labourers took part.

The Zaran colony lies in the forested area of the Kanhalgaon sanctuary, where wild animals are regularly seen. Animals that come close to settlements looking for water or prey risk falling into wells that have no parapet walls. The incident has again drawn attention to open wells in forest areas, with calls for such wells to be surveyed and walled.

Source: Chanda Blast