Leopard spotted in Noida, teams from Agra and Meerut involved in search ops

Greater Noida: A leopard was spotted at the under-construction Ajnara Le Garden Society building in Greater Noida on Tuesday. The Forest Department was notified by the society’s management. A Meerut Forest Department team, along with a team from Gautam Budh Nagar, arrived at the location and began capturing the leopard. The search, which began at 5 p.m., lasted until the report was filed. The leopard was spotted in the society’s under-construction structure at about 3.30 p.m. on Tuesday afternoon, causing fear. The Forest Department team arrived and began searching.

The Forest Department’s search and rescue effort began for a second day after a leopard was discovered inside a group housing society in Greater Noida (West), officials said.

Residents claimed to have observed the animal wandering around the area on Wednesday morning. The leopard sighting caused alarm among residents of Ajnara Le Garden in Greater Noida (West) Sector 16, popularly known as Noida Extension.

The society had issued a similar leopard alert a week ago when, on December 27, its maintenance department informed the residents about a feline’s suspected presence on the premises and urged them to avoid venturing outdoors.The society has around 16 residential towers of which five to six are under construction. The leopard was spotted by society workers in one of the under-construction towers’ basement on Tuesday. A couple of blurred pictures of the animal also emerged, according to the society residents. The society officials had on Tuesday issued a one-line message to the residents, requesting them to stay indoors and cautious after the leopard was spotted on the premises.

(With PTI inputs)