Bhubaneswar: Panic gripped residents of areas close to the Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) in Bhubaneswar on Saturday following claims about sighting of a leopard.
As per information, some employees reportedly spotted a leopard near the dumping yard in the high-security zone and raised an alarm. They also claimed to have found leopard pugmarks.
On being informed, a team of the Forest department rushed to the site and launched a search operation to ascertain the authenticity of the claim.
Equipped with nets and other equipment, the team of local police and forest department scanned the area conducted a thorough checking.
Earlier in 2019, forest department officials had caught a leopard from Bhubaneswar airport premises and released into the Chandaka forest.
The Bhubaneswar airport is one of the busiest and most important airports as it handles maximum number of flights and air travellers in Odisha.