Forest Minister B.S. Anand Singh on Sunday assured the residents of Baichenahalli village in Tumakuru district that the State government would issue a shoot-at-sight order to kill the man-eater leopard that has created a fear psychosis among locals. He also announced that the combing operations would start on Monday.
The Minister visited the village and consoled the parents and grandparents of the three-year-old girl who was killed in a leopard attack on Saturday. The leopard attacked the girl in front of her house while she was playing around 8 p.m. and dragged her to a distance of one and a half furlong.
Mr. Singh expressed regret over the death of the girl, Chandana. He also said that there were eight or nine leopards in Hebburu police station limits and that he would order the authorities to kill the man-eater as four people in the area had been killed in leopard attacks.
He also announced a compensation of ₹7.5 lakh to the family of the deceased girl and a pension of ₹2,000 a month for five years.
Angry villagers urged the Minister and officials to kill the leopard at the earliest.
District in-charge Minister J.C. Madhuswamy said though the law does not permit the killing of leopards, he and Mr. Singh would speak with the officials concerned and try to get a shoot-at-sight order in this case. He also said he would speak with officials to clear the thorny bushes, shrubs and other plants in that area which have become a hiding place for leopards.
The Minister made an appeal to the villagers to clear bushes in their farms to prevent leopards from hiding there. “If the farmers fail to do so, I have told the Deputy Conservator of Forests to clear them on private lands and collect the amount [for it] from the farmers,” Mr. Madhuswamy said.
D.C. Gowrishankar, MLA, meanwhile announced that he would give ₹2 lakh to the girl’s family as compensation.
