Leopard kills man (Gauhati, Assam)

In this combination photos taken Saturday, Jan. 7, 2012, a wild full grown leopard scalps the head of a man as it attacks after wandering into a residential neighborhood in Gauhati, in the northern state of Assam, India. Later the leopard was tranquilized by wildlife official and taken to the state zoological park. The leopard ventured into a crowded area and injured four people before it was captured and caged, local reports said.

(AP Photo/Manas Paran, The Sunday Indian) 

A closer look at the man attacked.

The leopard had strayed into the heart of the city and attacked a person at Nabagraha hill today. Panic struck locals tried to drive away the animal, which ran into a nearby house and was kept locked in it till forest department officials rescued it. The injured was admitted to hospital. The leopard had come out of the jungles in the Nabagraha hill from its Silpukhuri side.

At the end of the whole incident, one question always comes up,(why such incidents happen at all?) and I guess we speak it out loud or not, the answer is very clear to all of us. Rampant deforestation for (for whatever purpose it may be) is causing depredation of habitats of the wild animals forcing them to come out and attack people leading to increasing instances of man-animal conflicts.

And this is not just a single instance. There have been reports all around the world of such incidents and unless some concrete steps are taken to curb the destruction of their habitat, the wild animals are going to come out more into such man-animal conflicts...

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