Tuesday 14 April 2009

Leopard sighting a hoax to protect cashew crop

11 Apr 2009, 0339 hrs IST, TNN

PONDA: Forest officers suspect that the complaint of leopard sighting in Galwada-Usgaon in Ponda taluka might be fake, indulged in to protect the myriad cashew plantations in the area from thieves.

It may be recalled that a local resident, travelling by bike on the night of March 30, claimed that he saw two leopards attacking a cow. His bike light, chased the cats away, he'd insisted. However, subsequent efforts by wildlife officers to trap the leopards proved consistently futile.

Speaking to TOI on condition of anonymity, forest officers insisted that if there were leopards, they would have been spotted by more people or would have been trapped by now. While the traps laid near the cow attack had turned up empty, spreading the traps around to other places had proved equally futile.

"This clearly shows that there are no leopards in the area and it is all a hoax to stop thieves from stealing cashews at night," said the officers, adding, "It seems that the information given is false."

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Leopard-sighting-a-hoax-to-protect-cashew-crop/articleshow/4387212.cms

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