Panic struck the villagers of Kurli on seeing a leopard stray into their village during the wee hours from a forest on the Belpada-Tureikela border.
After first spotting the leopard in the cow-shed, a local named Milan Rana notified forest officials to take action.
Alarmed officials rushed to the spot to rescue the wild animal. During the rescue operation, a range officer Bijay Khuntia and Milan were injured.
Khuntia was admitted to Balangir District Headquarters Hospital and Milan was discharged after being given medical attention.
After 12 hours of relentless effort the leopard was eventually caught in a cage by a joint team of forest and police officials of Balangir, Kalahandi and Sambalpur.
The leopard is currently in a nursery of the forest department. He will be released into the Harishankar forest.
Video Editor: Ashutosh Bhardwaj
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)