Bharathiar university in Coimbatore declares holiday after leopard spotted on campus
Seeing the big cat lurking near an under-construction building adjacent to the Tamil department, some broke into a cold sweat, some froze.
Forest officials and authorities examine the spot where a leopard was seen
COIMBATORE: A bunch of morning walkers who were out and about their routine inside the Bharathiar University campus in Coimbatore were rudely interrupted by a leopard that seemed to have strolled beyond its comfort zone.
Seeing the big cat lurking near an under-construction building adjacent to the Tamil department, some broke into a cold sweat, some froze. The ones wide awake alerted the university authorities and forest department officials.
A team of forest department staff soon arrived on the campus and confirmed the animal to be a leopard by examining its pug marks. Also, two CCTV cameras were installed around the spot to monitor whether the leopard returns or not. A team of staff were also deployed for surveillance.
As a precaution, students were evacuated from the premises and classrooms were locked. The forest department has also advised students and staff to stay away from the area where the leopard movement was noticed.
The university declared it a holiday and students who arrived to attend classes were stopped at the gate and asked to leave. Sports competitions scheduled on the campus were cancelled and all other programmes postponed.
According to forest officials, the university is located close to a forest area, so the leopard might have wandered into the premises. “If there is further movement, then efforts will be taken to cage the animal,” said a forest official.
