Lucknow: An 88-year-old man was killed after a leopard dragged him away from the verandah of his house in the early hours of Saturday in UP’s Bahraich.The incident took place around 4am in Lodhan Purwa village near the Katarniaghat wildlife division.The victim, Ram Yadav, 88, was in the verandah of his house when the leopard entered the premises and attacked him. The animal then dragged the man nearly 500 mt away from the house.Hearing his screams, Yadav’s grandson, Suraj Yadav, along with other family members, rushed out armed with sticks and raised an alarm. Startled by the commotion, the leopard abandoned its prey and fled towards the nearby forest.Yadav sustained severe injuries, particularly to his neck, in the attack. Forest department personnel reached the village soon after being informed of the attack.The injured man was first taken to the Mihinpurwa community health centre, where doctors administered primary treatment. Owing to the seriousness of his condition, he was referred to the district hospital. However, doctors at the district hospital declared him dead on arrival.DFO Apoorva Dixit said, “Ram sustained serious injuries and was immediately taken to the community health centre before being referred to the district hospital. He succumbed to his injuries during treatment.”The DFO said the forest department has initiated the process of providing immediate financial assistance to the bereaved family under departmental provisions, while compensation under the applicable disaster relief norms is also being processed on priority. “All necessary documentation is being completed without delay so that the family receives the admissible compensation at the earliest,” he said.Dixit added that the department has launched efforts to capture the leopard responsible for the attack. “The incident took place about 500 mt from the forest boundary. To prevent any further attacks, forest department teams have intensified patrolling and continuous monitoring in the area. We are obtaining the necessary permission to install a cage, which will be placed immediately to trap the leopard. Every possible effort is being made to ensure that no similar incident occurs again,” he said.
