A plucky teenager saved his young cousin from the jaws of a leopard in Karpatwadi village near Tokawade in Murbad taluka of Thane district.

On Friday afternoon, Naresh Kaluram Bhala (14) and Harshad Vitthal Bhala (7) were with their grandmother on their farm located near the Murbad forest range. While the woman was busy farming, the boys went in search of blackberries.

The leopard, which was hiding in the bushes, leapt on the older boy, but as he quickly moved away, it attacked Harshad and injured him. A quick-thinking Naresh picked up stones and a stick lying at the spot and started hitting the leopard, forcing it to let go of its grip on Harshad.

As the duo raised an alarm and their grandmother Kanhibai came rushing with a ‘koyta’ (sickle), the leopard fled. Kanhibai rushed both children to hospital, where they were treated for their injuries.

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Interestingly, a day later, the forest team found the same leopard dead around 300 metres away.

The carcass of the female cat, around 10-12 years old, was taken to the Sanjay Gandhi National Park for a post mortem examination. The animal was found to have no external injuries or abnormalities. Pathologists from the Parel veterinary college Dr Prashant Gadve and Dr Shailesh Pethe reported the cause of death as due to old age.

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On Saturday, officials from the local Tokawade police station felicitated the children. Suhas Kharmate, in-charge of Tokawade police station, said, “Naresh showed unusual courage for such a young lad to save his cousin.”

Originally published in The Times of India

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