Tirupati: In order to curb the leopard menace at the temple town of Tirumala and to prevent attacks on humans, officials from Tirupati wildlife managements have come up with various initiatives, which are going to be implemented with immediate effect.
The forest officials held a meeting with Tirupati Urban SP K.K.N. Anburajan and TTD CV&SO Gopinath Jetti at Tirumala on Tuesday, in which they discussed the action plan to be implemented to protect the devotees and locals from attacks by the wild cat.
According to the officials, the forest officials had suggested TTD to restrict entry for the two-wheelers on both the ghat road of Tirumala from 6 pm to 6 am and also to keep the two trekking paths, Alipiri and Srivari Mettu closed for trekkers from 7 pm to 6 am.
The foresters asked TTD to impose speed restrictions on the ghat roads ensure that the speed of vehicles is controlled at 20 kmph. Apart from this, the devotees need to be asked not to stop their vehicles along the ghat road unnecessarily.
They also suggested to arrange 24X7 patrolling vehicles on both the ghat roads and told TTD to escort the devotee’s vehicles, which were allowed after the due time, by attaching patrolling vehicles to check the route before.
The foresters further took objection to the locals feeding the animals with vegetables and fruits. They argued that after feeding the animal, people tend to throw the garbage by the sides of road. Doing so may attract the wild cats. The leopards will venture near the households to eat the left over vegetables and fruits. They further urged the TTD to maintain the water pits for animals behind the parapet wall and not on the side of the road.
