Uttarakhand: In Pauri, a leopard dragged away a woman again; she was referred to a higher medical center via air ambulance

Wild animal attacks in Uttarakhand show no signs of abating. Once again, a leopard attacked a woman in Devradi village of Chaubattakhal assembly constituency in Pauri district. The attack occurred yesterday in Pauri. During the attack, local youth Ankit Kandari bravely risked his life to rescue the woman from the leopard’s clutches. The seriously injured woman was initially given first aid with the help of villagers. Due to her critical condition, she was airlifted to AIIMS Rishikesh by air ambulance on the instructions of the District Magistrate of Pauri, where a team of doctors is treating her. Meanwhile, there is widespread anger among villagers over the continuous increase in leopard attacks in the hilly areas. It is worth noting that in the last five years, leopards have killed 27 people and injured more than 105 in the six ranges of the Pauri Garhwal Forest Division.

Leopards killed 27 people in five years

• In the last five years, leopards have killed 27 people in the six ranges of the Pauri Garhwal Forest Division.
• More than 105 people have been injured.
• The highest number of seven deaths occurred in Pauri in 2022.
• The highest number of 25 people were injured in 2021.
• The fewest incidents occurred in 2023, with one death.

In the Garhwal Forest Division’s Pauri range, Nagdev, Pokhra, Western Ameli range Damdeval, Eastern Ameli Thalisain, Diwa range Dhumakot and Paithani range, five people have died and 25 have been injured in leopard attacks this year. According to the department, the first death due to a leopard attack this year occurred on June 2nd in the Eastern Ameli range. Besides this, two more deaths occurred in the Pokhra range on September 12th and November 13th, and two more in the Pauri range on November 20th and December 4th. In 2020, four people died and 12 were injured. In 2021, six people died and 25 were injured. In 2022, seven people died and 21 were injured, while in 2023-24, five people died and 22 were injured.

A man was killed in a leopard attack early Tuesday morning in the Barakot area of ​​Champawat district. 45-year-old Dev Singh Adhikari had gone outside his house for his morning routine when the leopard attacked him, resulting in his death. A large number of people gathered at the spot after learning about the incident. This is the second death due to a leopard attack in the Barakot area within a month. Angry villagers expressed strong resentment over the incident and demanded that the forest department declare the leopard a man-eater and kill it.