Surat:
A leopard has been declared a man-eater and orders have been issued to shoot it in Mandvi taluka of Surat district, forest officials said here today.
"The leopard which has created havoc in the villages near the forest region in Mandvi has been ordered to be shot on as it has already killed four human beings in the past couple of weeks," Assistant Conservator of Forest (Mandvi) D S Chaudhary told PTI.
"The animal is a young male about 6-7 years old. It has been declared a man-eater as it has already killed four people, including a 11-year-old girl on Friday last," the forest official said.
Chaudhary said the leopard was sighted yesterday and one shot was fired, which injured the animal a little, but not significantly enough.
A 5 km radius area has been cordoned off and round the clock watch was on, he added.
"The search operation has been affected due to thick vegetation. Also, since the leopard is young and healthy he is quick and powerful and manages to escape in the thick forest where the visibility is only upto a few meters," Chaudhary said.