| Residents living in the suburbs of powai, adjoining the sanjay gandhi national park, are under the threat of death every moment. The leopard, without any formal invitation, can come down to the residential area to have its supper. |
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 After a lull of two years, leopards are once again making an appearance in the suburbs of Powai adjoining the Sanjay Gandhi National Park.
A team of forest officials on Monday visited Borivilis Raheja Vihar housing complex and Shipping Corporation of Indias Maritime Training Institute in Powai to verify the leopard sightings.
The big cats are once again being spotted on the fringes of national park, setting off alarm bells among locals. "People staying in Powai have reported leopard sightings in the last two days. We have sent our men to survey the area," said P N Munde, SGNP conservator of forests, adding that there was no need for residents to panic.
An SCI security guard said a leopard was spotted in the maritime training institute campus on Friday last week, and that two traps had been set since then to catch it.
Assistant conservator of forests Kailash Birari added: "There are currently around 25 leopards in the national park. Some of the cats have been regularly spotted at Khatau Mill compound in Borivli (East) and also near the Borivli gate of the forest since last week. But they mainly come out to hunt stray dogs."
In October 2003, a leopard killed a four-year-old boy while he was playing at Sunrise Building in Raheja Vihar. In fact, 19 people were killed last year in leopard attacks. Public outcry then forced the forest department to lay several traps in and around Powai, Aarey colony, Borivli, and Mulund.
Eventually, 37 big cats were trapped in Mumbai in 2004 and transferred to other sanctuaries.
Deer, rabbits and pigs were also released in the forest in 2004 to increase the prey base and ensure the leopards did not stray far from the core areas. But in the absence of a boundary wall, the animals occasionally move to the fringes in search of easy prey such as dogs, cattle, etc. Forest officials had also issued a set of dos and donts for those living on the outskirts of the national park to avert attacks.
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