Newsinc24 Team A four-year-old girl was killed in a leopard attack in Uttarakhand’s Pauri district, officials said on Friday, triggering outrage among local residents.According to information,the incident took place around 9 pm on Thursday in Bhatkot village in the Pokhra area, where the child, identified as Drishti Rawat, was having dinner near her house with her sister and grandmother. According to officials, a leopard suddenly attacked, snatched the girl, and fled towards the nearby forest.Villagers immediately launched a search operation, and the mutilated body of the child was later recovered nearly two kilometres away from her home.
Police and forest department teams reached the spot soon after the incident. However, agitated villagers staged a protest, demanding the presence of senior officials and initially prevented authorities from removing the body.On Friday morning, Chaubattakhal Sub-Divisional Magistrate Rekha Arya and Divisional Forest Officer Mahatim Yadav arrived at the village, following which a post-mortem was conducted near the residence. The body was later handed over to the grieving family.
Forest officials met the victim’s family and assured them of all possible assistance as per government norms. Authorities have also initiated measures to monitor the leopard and prevent further attacks in the region.In view of the rising threat, a precautionary holiday has been declared for schools in the Pokhra and Bironkhal areas. Block Education Officer Manoj Kumar Joshi said that, acting on the directives of District Magistrate Swati S Bhadauria, schools in the affected areas will remain closed on April 4 and April 6 to ensure the safety of students.
