Mulugu: The sighting of pug marks of a leopard in the Alubaka area of Venkatapuram mandal has caused panic among local residents who have urged the forest department to step up surveillance in the locality.
The villagers on Monday evening claimed that they heard a leopard roaring near the village. They even claimed that the big cat drank water from the tank of a house in the village before vanishing into the nearby forest. The villagers alerted the forest officials, who reached the village and examined the pug marks of the leopard. However, the officials said the pug marks were not of a leopard. They searched the entire village and nearby forest area for the leopard, but could not locate it.
The forest officials urged the villagers not to spread rumours about the presence of leopards which would trigger panic among the people of other villages as well.