Dibrugarh: A 12-year-old boy was critically injured after a leopard attacked him while he was collecting vegetable fern, locally known as dhekia, near a forested area in Nagabari village of Khowang in Dibrugarh district on Saturday afternoon.
The injured boy, identified as Pulak Gogoi, was initially taken to a nearby primary health centre before being referred to the Assam Medical College and Hospital (AMCH) in Dibrugarh for further treatment.
According to local residents, Pulak had entered a nearby forest patch with a nine-year-old boy at around 3 pm to collect dhekia. The leopard suddenly emerged from dense vegetation and attacked Pulak.
The younger boy, who witnessed the incident, managed to escape by climbing a nearby tree. Pulak was attacked by the leopard and sustained serious injuries, particularly to his face and ears.
The animal reportedly fled into the surrounding forest after the attack. Once the leopard moved away, the nine-year-old climbed down and alerted villagers, who rushed to the spot and rescued the injured boy.
Pulak was taken to the nearby primary health centre, where he received initial treatment. Given the severity of his injuries, doctors later referred him to AMCH for specialised care.
The attack has sparked concern among residents of Nagabari and neighbouring areas, with locals fearing that the leopard may still be hiding in the dense vegetation close to the settlement.
Following the incident, forest officials reached the area and launched an operation to drive the animal away from inhabited areas. Forest personnel also carried out blank firing to scare the leopard and prevent it from approaching the village.
Residents said people frequently enter nearby forest patches to collect vegetables and other forest produce, increasing the risk of encounters with wild animals.
The incident has once again highlighted the growing human-leopard conflict in Upper Assam. Shrinking forest cover and increasing human activity around forested areas have pushed leopards closer to villages and other inhabited locations, raising the likelihood of such encounters.