Guwahati: At least 13 people, including three forest personnel, were injured in an attack by a leopard in upper Assam’s Jorhat district on Monday, officials said.
Forest officials said, a stray leopard attacked forest officials and the residents of the Rain Forest Research Institute (RFRI) at Chenijan in Jorhat on Monday.
The leopard, which sneaked into human habitat from a forest started attacking people without provocation, said a forest official.
Most of the injured including women and children are from the RFRI campus, located on the outskirts of Jorhat town.
Forest department officials said the animal is likely to have intruded into the campus in search of food from the neighbouring Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary.
“A total of 13 people, three forest department staff and 10 civilians have been injured in the attack. The leopard’s behaviour is erratic as they usually don’t attack humans,” HT quoted Jorhat SP Mohan Lal Meena as saying.
Meena said all the injured people were admitted to the hospital and their condition is not serious.
In a video captured by forest officials, the big cat is seen moving around the campus. Another video shows the leopard jumping over a barbed wire fence and attacking a four-wheeler.
Forest department officials tranquillized the leopard on Tuesday morning.