Pottangi: In a rare act of courage, a youth of Salapguda village of Kotia panchayat under this block in Koraput district saved himself Friday night from a two-hour long fight with a leopard and her cub.
Kamraj Khosla (42) was admitted to a local hospital.
According to sources, Kamraj came to the weekly market of Kunduli Friday to shop household items. However, he failed to pick up the last bus to Salapguda and had to walk all the way to the village.
Kamraj was three km from Madakar, a village along the jungle route, when he suddenly came face-to-face with a female leopard and its cub. The duo pounced on him from a tree and the youth fell on the ground. While the leopards tried to latch on their prey, Kamraj was fighting for his life. Significantly, he didn’t allow the mother leopard to sink in her teeth on his body by punching the animal’s mouth repeatedly. The conflict continued for nearly two hours and at one point in time, Kamraj managed to raise the leopard in the air and smashed it on the ground forcing the animal to retreat. The cub, however, didn’t pull out and attacked Kamaraj again. After driving out the female leopard, a spirited Kamraj swirled the cub in the air by holding its tail and threw it to a distance. The cub disappeared in the forest soon after.
Madakar villagers rushed the profusely bleeding Kamraj to Kotia primary health centre in critical state and later shifted him to the CHC.
When contacted, Semiliguda ranger Gouriprasad Rath said, “I have asked forester Sudhir Behera to look into the matter.”
The victim, on the basis of an investigation report, would be given assistance in accordance with government rules, the ranger added. He along with ACF would personally meet the injured Sunday, Rath further said. PNN
