Maneater of Devprayag / Chandmari.

[AgentDoubleS]

Absolutely thrilling, Prashant. Eagerly following this post.
What ammo were you using for the 3006?

[prashantsingh]

Leopards Everywhere.
It's raining Leopards in the area.

The S.D.O. Mr Ansari has seen a leopard crossing the road on the very first day of his visit.
Mr Moti Singh from the tranquilizing team has seen a mother with her two young cubs.

Three traps have been placed but the leopards are really smart. None of them take to the traps.

We see two in a short span of 6 days. The third turns out to be a maneater and is shot.
I will keep the story short now.

On the second day we get a call from the Officers Mess of Regt. A. It is close to mid night and the cook has just finished with his work and has seen a leopard.We rush to the spot and see it as well.This one turns out to be a young fellow. It is rather small in size and Singh is sure it could not have killed the 16 year old girl."Look at the oversized ears".Singh says."This is a little chap who can't be the killer". This leopard is spotted in the clearing behind the Officers Mess. He doesn't give us much time and is soon lost in the bush.

The other one is a big male. He has been spotted by a number of people. Comes close to human habitation and is an initial suspect. We get a call from some soldiers of Regt C on the 31st night (Oct).It has rained in the evening and the ground is wet. The leopard has been sitting on a tree for half an hour. We ask them not to disturb the animal and reach the spot as soon as possible.To our surprise the beast is still there. Singh and I crawl up to a lantana bush. I place my shooting sticks (bipod) and rest my rifle on it. The leopard is streched out on a thick branch of an old dry tree with his tail hanging down.The cross of my scope is placed just behind the shoulder for a perfect heart and lung shot.My index finger is streched out straight. Away from trigger. A squeeze of the trigger and the 180 grain soft nose bullet should bring the animal down immediately.Singh pulls up the binoculars and takes a good look. The soldiers have their torches focused on him. They are whispering from behind. "Maar do saab" (shoot him saab). Singh stands up slowly and walks towards the side. I follow him. The leopard gives us a glance but is not affected. The wispering amongst the soldiers now gets louder. "Maar kyun nahi rahe?Maar do saab." The leopard is still there. A sitting duck for even an amateur shikari. An easy game.I had read leopards are cunning and smart. Specially maneaters. This one doesn't behave like one. Why is he still sitting there? Singh and I are now hardly 20 yards from the majestic beast. The big male has a beautiful dark colour. His tail is thick and all black at the tip. He is surely more than seven and a half feet .A most beautiful trophy by any standards. But we are not here on a trophy hunt. We are here to shoot the maneater. We watch him for another 15 minutes. Finally he gets so fed up with all the torch light on his face that he gets up, comes down the tree and jumps into the thick undergrowth.
For a moment I am spell bound by his beauty. I only wish I had my camera instead of the rifle.
The soldiers are very upset." Why didn't you shoot the leopard?" They question.
Singh explains"This is not the maneater. Didn't you see his behaviour. He is not after us. We had the rifle on him. We could have easily shot him. But he just ignored us. He can surely not be a man killer. He has no interest in us. Even when we had all the lights on him. He did not get aggitated. Only when we really got very close to him and you guys started talking loudy, did he get up and walk away. He has been there for more than 45 minutes now. He has been there looking for his prey......and we do not feature on his menu yet." Singh jokes.

[Baljit]

Thank you so much Baljit.
Sorry for troubling you again and again.

My deer Prashant, sorry for what????????????????????????

I can't tell you how happy I am to post these pictures behalf of you.It's my pleasure. Anything for you Prashant.

Very nice write up Prashant. I can't wait for the next chapters of this story.


Baljit

[prashantsingh]

2nd of November 2013. 7 p.m.
It's amongst the darkest nights of the year. A night before Dewali (amavasya).
When most people are dressed in the best of clothes to celebrate the festival of lights.
Three men dressed in cammo. Armed with two rifles and a gun are out in the cold stalking a maneater.
We get a call that a 9 years old girl has been killed. We rush to the spot and reach Birori village (a distance of less than 3 miles from Chandbari village---as the crow flies, but a distance of almost twenty kms by road---there is no bridge on the Nun river and we are forced to take the longer route). We get down from the SUV and load our weapons. The girl has just been killed. The villagers have got together and pulled the dead girl away but the leopard is still there. Waiting to get a chance to feed on it's fresh kill. We see blood on the ground and follow the trail. We come upon the girls chappals with pools of blood here and there. We ask the villagers to stay back and make a single file. Corbett99 is on the left, Singh in the middle and I take the right flank. Pandit ji ,the driver given by the Forest Dept. holds the flash light. Though unarmed. He walks bravely behind us. He assures us that whatever happens. He will not move the light away, once we come upon the killer. Every step is taken with caution. The leopard is the fastest , most cunning and clever amongst all big cats.In these conditions, it can see and hear 6 times better than humans. This is his land and we are mere trespassers. No doubt we are armed. But I have all respect for this most graceful of predators.
As we move forwards. I see a pair of eyes shining through the darkness. Two burning ambers from behind a bush. As the flashlight fixes on the eyes I see the leopard broadside. A flick of the tail and the leopard charges towards us. We are hardly 30 yards from the animal. Almost simultaniously all guns boom. Bang. Bang. Bang. Reload. Bang. Bang. It's all over.
A quick end to the reign of terror. The maneater turns out to be a 8 year old female leopard .

When I come back to my SUV and open the boot to keep my rifle, I see my shooting sticks and my ear muffs lying there.
Singh's words come to mind immediately. "Sab Bakwaas hai Doctor saab.......the maneater will not give you a chance to use them."

When I sit next to the dead leopard my mind is overwhelmed with emotion. On one hand I am glad that we have killed the maneater and no more human lives will be lost. On the other hand I feel sad for killing such a majestic animal. I feel sad for the plight of leopards and all wildlife in an ever shrinking habitat.

[ak27]

When I sit next to the dead leopard my mind is overwhelmed with emotion. On one hand I am glad that we have killed the maneater and no more human lives will be lost. On the other hand I feel sad for killing such a majestic animal. I feel sad for the plight of leopards and all wildlife in an ever shrinking habitat.

I am sorry if this has already been answered but, Can't the maneater be caught and relocated? I know things are not as easy as said but I share the same sentiment as you about the killing of a sublime creature, hence the question. It's been done earlier, as mentioned in the news-article stub here: http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp ... 686354.ece

That being said, please bring yourself to condone what you've done as the right thing because you have, by the end of the day, saved a few human lives.

[prashantsingh]

I have asked Baljit to put up the last set of photographs.

The next day (Dewali) the dead leopard was brought to the Forest Rest House for atopsy after which the carcass was burnt.
That was the day we all went and took snaps with the maneater.
The carcass was finally placed on the pyre and the flames soon engulfed it.
I folded my hands and said a short prayer.

"Asato ma sad gamaya"
Lead me from the unreal to the real
"Tamasao ma jyotir gamaya"
Lead me from darkness to light
"Mrityor ma amratam gamaya"
Lead me from death to immortality.
"Om Shanti Shanti Shanti"
Om Peace Peace Peace.

Peace had finally returned to the valley.

I am no one to judge whether what we did was right or wrong . All I know AK 27 is that we shot the right maneater. This prevented not only loss of human life. But also saved other leopards (not maneaters) from victimization.

[Baljit]

Hello friends.

Here is few more pictures sent out by Prashant and i like to add these pictures with his story.












Enjoy.
Baljit

[xl_target]

Prashant,
Excellent narration. Did the autopsy reveal anything of note? Was the Leopard suffering from any physical ailments that would have precluded its catching it's normal prey? Or was the paucity of game in the area (as you have mentioned earlier) the cause of its pursuit of human beings? I realize that once it figures out how easy it is to overwhelm a puny human, it would continue to pursue them.

I am sorry if this has already been answered but, Can't the maneater be caught and relocated?

Who is going to do the catching, especially of an animal who has shown no fear of man?
Not me!
Besides that, once a man-eather, always a man-eater. Relocating him/her would just put some other villagers at risk. I sure wouldn't want any man-eater to be relocated into my area, especially if I had kids. How would you like it to be relocated to your back yard?

[ak27]

How would you like it to be relocated to your back yard?

Hell yeah!! Albeit in a 2-inch dia HR steel rod cage!

On a serious note, I wouldn't even wanna go any where near that 'thing'. I was not trying to be a tree-hugger or a squeamish pacifist, gentlemen! I just wanted to know the practicality of relocation especially in the light of the article that I've posted the link to. In fact, I knew all the points that you've mentioned but I was somehow interested in listening to Prashantji's answer who had been there and done that. Thanks anyways for your answer xl sir, not for the sarcasm!

@Prashant Just to clear the air, I was not being sarcastic when I said you've saved a few human lives. I just wanted to lighten you up as you were feeling sorry for the beast. And yes, you have saved the other leopards too from victimization.

[brihacharan]

Hi Prashant,
> Very well documented episode
> At the end of it all it leaves us with a sense of remorse - a dead innocent child & a dead magnificent leopard...
> Nature plays its checks & balances and life goes on - there are lessons to be learnt...
> Prashant...Now I understood the statement Mr. Singh made "Bagwas", though ironic but true!
> You had mentioned that a volley of shots were fired when the leopard was spotted (Bang - Bang - Bang) - wonder which one was fatal - did all the shots hit the leopard? Just curious....
> Baljit - Your photo of the 'chappal & blood on the grass' conveyed more about the gruesome incident, than words could have described it...
> Prashant the last sentence of the prayer "Mruthyortma Amritam Gamaye" (Let death lead us to immortality) summed it up well.
Briha

[Katana]

There have been 2 instances of leopards picking up children in south Gujarat in the past 10 odd days. Will try and post the press links.

[prashantsingh]

AK 27. In the link you have posted. The leopard was caught in the trap, tranqualized and translocated.
As mentioned earlier 3 traps had already been placed and none of the leopards in the area took to the traps. Dart guns have very limited range and accuracy. There was a senior forest guard Mr Moti Singh already deputed for the job. Moti is an experienced gentleman with more than 3 decades of service.

XL. The leopard was in good health. No sign of injury , old age or any disease. She was neither pregnant , nor with cubs ( mothers have swolen tits +- milk). When the atopsy was done , only grass came out from the stomach. She did not get a chance to eat the first kill because the villagers reached the place in time. Even with the second kill she could not eat it. The 9 yrs old girl was taken away before she could feed on it. The Vet who did the atopsy felt she had not had a meal for almost a fortnight.
Interestingly there was a marked difference in the two kills and the way they were made.
While the first kill. The 16 year old girl from Chandmari may have been killed accidently (in broad day light) in thick Sal forest.
The 9 year old girl from Birori village was killed in the cover of darkness and picked up from right in front of her house while she was playing outside.Their house was a katch house with mud walls and a thached roof. It was also the last house beyond which the jungles started.
Exactly what you mentioned. Easy prey.

Briha Sir. All the shots were hits. Infact the first time the Vet saw the maneater he commented. "Isko to aap logon ne chalni kar diya".
This was no trophy hunt. We were not bothered about the skin as the animal had to be burnt anyways. We had to make sure it was dead. Stone dead. ASAP.
I took my father (an ex army officer and an old time hunter) to the place the next day. I asked him what he would do with the animal if he had to send it to the taxidermist. He told me he would have made a shoulder mount out of it and discarded the rest of the skin.
That's why I took the close up of the face Sir.

From left to right.
Last snap (from left to right) === Corbett99 ,Singh (with gogs) , I and Corbett 99's son smiling .
In the second last snap where the 4 of us are sitting. You will find Panditji (the driver and the torch bearer) with the shotgun.

[Vikram]

Prashant,

Excellent narration and a job done brilliantly. Take a bow, my man. Many thanks for writing it for us and sharing the photos. I really wish there are more people who has you team's moral compass and discipline.


Best-
Vikram

[drms]

Prashant ji ,
well done as well as well described .
best...
Dr.Manjinder Singh

[dev]

There are no words to sing out this heroic feat. I am just pleased that i got a chance to know you.
My spine tingles everytime that I read the saga.
Respectfully,
Dev