Maharashtra: Confusion within forest department leaves Vasaikars at wits’ end

Despite 25 days going by since first sighting, dept yet to move on capturing big cat; yo-yo on barricades sends tempers of fishermen soaring

Vasai residents are perplexed as to whether or not they should take the Vasai fort road past sunset as the forest department—which has kept the stretch off limits for 12 hours after 7 pm every day, in a bid to capture a leopard—has been inconsistent in its enforcement of the rule. Dozens of forest department officials as well as members of two NGOs have been camping near the ruins of the Vasai fort since March 29.

After the big cat was spotted near Vasai fort, the officials concerned had ordered that the arterial Vasai fort road be blocked after 7 pm for 12 hours. But, the stretch was left open on Friday evening after which it was shut again on Saturday evening. Interestingly, every exit on the fort premises, where the forest department had installed barricades to restrict public movement, was opened. “The local fishermen are incurring losses. I am wondering why the road which was left open on Friday evening, was blocked again on Saturday evening by forest officials,” said Sanjay Koli, a villager.

Forest officials on the Vasai fort premises where cages are believed to be installed to trap the leopard. Pics/Hanif Patel

There are two villages near the fort, Pachu Bandar and Killa Bandar, in which nearly 16,000 people reside. Though no human-animal conflict has been noticed since March 29, residents are reeling under constant fear and hope the wild cat is captured soon. “We don’t know what their game plan is as we have been facing difficulties attending church after 7 pm on Saturday because the officials do not allow us to cross the stretch in the night,” said Vijay Agaskar, a government school teacher, said, adding, “A total of 7,000 Catholics live in the village and all of us are facing difficulties attending evening church services, especially on weekends.”

Kuldeep Vartak, a local social worker, said, “People have been having sleepless nights since the past month, but the deputy conservator of forest (DCF) Dahanu is not even bothered to visit the area to meet residents, who have not been taken into confidence amid the rescue operation of the leopard. What’s stopping the DCF from visiting Vasai from Dahanu?”

“The forest department, along with two NGOs, has been claiming to be working to capture the leopard since March 29. But it is yet to be captured. The forest department has miserably failed as they are busy opening and shutting the road, instead of capturing the leopard to restore normalcy. The business of local fishermen has been damaged in the past one month,” Vartak said.

To trap a predator

Though Madhumita Subramani, DCF, Dahanu, refused to comment on the capturing of the leopard, sources have told mid-day that the higher-ups gave the order to install two cages on the 17th day and these were set up at two different locations at Vasai fort, which is spread across approximately 110 acres. “Nearly one dozen traps, as well as live cameras, were immediately placed across the majestic Vasai fort to capture the movement of leopard. We had been awaiting orders from higher-ups in Nagpur before installing cages to capture the big cat. Though we had been constantly following up, the requests were approved on the 17th day and the cages were installed on the 18th day from March 29,” a source from the forest department said.

The Vasai fort road has been shut for 12 hours for the past few weeks

“Initially chickens were kept in the cages to trap the leopard, but the big cat was smart enough not to fall for this snare. It’s male and we assume that it might have been previously captured in a cage. But this will be confirmed only when it is captured,” said the source. “After a few days when the leopard did not notice the cages, we kept goats in them. But our efforts have gone in vain so far,” added the source.

Coordination issues

There is a lack of coordination among the department’s officials, said another source, adding, “The locations where cages have been installed do not correspond to the areas where leopard movement is frequently observed. Though we have been suggesting that the location of the cages be changed, some are unnecessarily intervening and not allowing us to do so. This is the prime reason behind the delay in capturing the wild cat.”

Though residents of Vasai and the fishing community said that a few stray dogs and goats have been missing in the area after the leopard was first sighted last month, a forest official said no carcasses were noticed in the fort area. “It is believed that the leopard has been sustaining itself on rodents, which are abundant in the area. Also, it is widely seen near mangroves, so it must be eating crabs and fish,” said the source.

Official Speak

Though the local fishing community is frustrated because the leopard is yet to be caught, Range Forest Officer, Mandvi, Shweta Ade told mid-day, “Initially, all the exits of Vasai fort were kept closed at night as the leopard was seen crossing the road. Now, the road has been opened for the public.”

“I have been asked to capture the movement of leopard in the area, so I am following the order from our higher-ups,” said Ade, who added, “Locals have been told not to operate their vehicles at a high speed on the fort road, which has now been opened, following the directions of the DCF, Dahanu.” “We are taking all possible measures to keep the safety of people and the animal in mind,” Ade added.

A senior executive of an NGO that has been assisting the forest officials, said, “Since March 29, our team of volunteers along with forest department and field researchers have been monitoring the leopard’s activities not only with camera traps but also live cameras. The forest department has conducted awareness programmes for public safety. Forest department officials are conducting regular patrolling 24x7 to prevent leopard-human conflict. Initially, locals reported that the animal was crossing the road every night, so the forest department restricted the movement of vehicles at nighttime.”

He added, “For the past six days, with the help of live cameras, we came to know that the leopard did not cross the road. So for the past two days, the department stopped restricting vehicles, as it seems that the animal is not roaming near the road or human habitats. We appeal to the people not to panic if they spot the leopard.They should inform the forest department and not try to provoke the big cat.”
“I was present near the Vasai fort on Saturday evening when a few people tried to go beyond the barricades to their villages; but the road was blocked as forest officials are conducting the operation,” Ranjeet Andhale, senior inspector of Vasai police station, told mid-day.

Timeline of curious incident at Vasai fort

The Portuguese-era fort, a centrally protected monument

March 29 Leopard is first seen near Vasai fort around 8.40 pm
March 30 Multiple camera traps are installed to keep track of the movement of the big cat. All exits of the fort are barricaded
April 2 Forest officials call a meeting with locals and request them to cooperate in their operation
April 13 A meeting is called at the tehsildar office where the local fishing community, forest and revenue officials are present to discuss the rescue operation.
April 15 Forest officials receive an order from higher-ups in Nagpur to install cages
April 16 Initially, two cages with a few chickens were set up in the area to trap the leopard However, after a few days, forest officials bring in goats to lure the predator
April 19 Forest officials remove barricades following directive of DCF, Dahanu
April 20 All the exits of Vasai fort are barricaded again after 7pm for 12 hours
April 21 The barricades are removed

16,000
Population of Pachu and Killa Bandar

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