protests-after-leopard-kills-minor-in-north-bengal-tea-estate

A three-year-old boy was mauled to death by a leopard at the Kalabari Tea Garden in Banarhat, Jalpaiguri district, late Friday evening, triggering grief and outrage across the region.

 

Eyewitnesses said the child had been sitting in the courtyard with his grandfather when the leopard leapt into the premises around 8 p.m. and dragged him into the adjacent tea bushes. His body was recovered later that evening.

 

The shocking incident has reignited anger among residents, who blamed the Forest Department and local police for failing to act despite recurring wildlife attacks in the area. Protesters gheraoed forest officials and accused them of ignoring prior leopard sightings.

 

According to officials, forest staff had previously captured three leopards from the Kalabari region in the past two months and had installed cages to trap others. Locals, however, criticised the lack of active alert systems or any protective arrangements for the densely inhabited settlements bordering the tea estate.

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“The incident took place around 8 p.m. The child was taken away by a leopard. We are monitoring the situation. The villagers are angry and efforts are being made to restore peace,” said Rajiv De, Assistant Forest Officer of the Jalpaiguri Wildlife Division.

 

Demonstrators reportedly sent Binnaguri Ranger Himadri Debnath alone into the tea garden and refused to speak to other forest staff until senior officials arrived. Dhupguri Subdivisional Police Officer Gelson Lepcha reached the spot late at night to pacify the agitated villagers.

 

Authorities acknowledged the presence of leopards in the area but maintained that steps had been taken to mitigate the danger. Still, the tragedy has underlined growing human-wildlife conflict in North Bengal’s Dooars region, where tea gardens often border shrinking forest habitats.

 

Past cases have seen similar patterns of neglect. On January 15, 2019, a child was killed in the Gargenda Tea Garden, while another fatal attack was reported on July 5, 2024, in Totapara Tea Garden.

 

Locals have now demanded the installation of early warning systems, better fencing, more forest patrols, and prompt intervention to prevent further bloodshed in human settlements near forest fringes.