Taken for kittens, leopard cubs brought home in Nuh

Sumedha Sharma

Gurugram, July 14

High drama was witnessed at Nuh’s Kotla village after a cattle rearer brought home a pair of leopard cubs from Aravallis late Thursday evening thinking them to be kittens.

The cubs were taken back by Wildlife Department officials to the forest and after nearly six hours, the mother reportedly took them away. Though the Wildlife Department has no photo or video to confirm the reunion, officials cited pug marks as proof of their claim.

“The family claims that they found the cubs in ruins of Kotla Fort in Aravallis and mistook them for kittens. We managed to rehabilitate them in the jungle and ran a successful operation,” said Wildlife Inspector Rajesh Chahal.

The team built a raised platform and placed the cubs on it so that their mother could hear the wails. They stood at a distance and after six hours a female leopard took them away.

While the Wildlife Department is lauding the operation, wildlife activists are rattled over the inaction of the authorities concerned in what appears to be a case of smuggling. They have raised questions over the botched up rehabilitation operation.

“How can they be so sure that the cubs were taken away by their mother? Pug marks could have been of another leopard who might have just devoured them? The fact that accused mistook them for kittens is unbelievable as the entire village was posting videos with the cubs the whole night. The Wildlife Department should have taken strict action considering the history of leopard poaching in the Aravallis,” said environmentalist Vaishali Rana.

MS Malik, chief conservator of forests (wildlife), said he will look into all versions and take necessary action.