A boy grabbed by a leopard in India is lucky to be alive after the animal left him when his mother chased him.
The child, believed to be about 5 years old, was sitting in her hut with her mother and siblings when the cat approached, local authorities said.
The woman, who was referred to locally as Kiran Baiga, jumped and chased the animal as she screamed, according to YP Singh, field director for Sanjay-Dubri National Park and Tiger Reserve in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.
Like other national parks in India, Sanjay-Dubri has a core where most of the wildlife resides. This is surrounded by a buffer zone where some people live alongside free-roaming animals.
Singh said the family lives in the village of Badi Jhiriya, which is in the buffer zone of the reserve, which is unfenced.
Recalling the episode, which took place on November 30, Singh told the CNN International: “You were sitting in your hut with your children when the leopard arrived. He took the child and started to run away when the lady chased him, screaming and a lot more people appeared, so the leopard dropped the child and ran.”
The boy suffered minor injuries but is now fully recovered, according to Singh.
“He wasn’t badly hurt, but the leopard’s teeth bit into him. He was admitted to a hospital and is completely fine now,” he said.
Though it’s called a tiger reserve, the park is home to a wide variety of animals, including 32 species of mammals — leopards among them.
Singh said wildlife teams monitor the region, but added that “a leopard doesn’t care what the core or the buffer zone is, there’s no fixed limit for them.”
“These forests are monitored by forestry officials, but it is not possible to track any and all movements of wild animals. You can only track animals with a collar on, otherwise the animals move freely,” he said.
Shivraj Singh Chouhan, chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, claimed on social media on Nov. 30 that the mother chased the animal for an entire kilometer.
“This courage to face death is a remarkable form of motherhood. Congratulations to the mother, Mrs. Kiran Baiga, on behalf of the people of the state”, he concluded.
(*This text has been translated. Click here to read the original in English)
Reference: CNN Brasil
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