Camera surveillance to track carnivore near Hasanur
Forest Department officials in Erode district are using drones and camera traps to track a suspected leopard following a fatal attack on a local worker. Residents have protested, prompting authorities to increase night patrols and surveillance in the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve area.
Why it matters
This incident highlights the ongoing human-wildlife conflict in protected forest regions and the increasing use of technology in wildlife management and public safety.
Forest Department personnel have intensified surveillance using automatic camera traps and drones to identify the carnivore suspected of attacking and killing a daily-wage worker near Hasanur in Erode district on the night of October 3, 2026. The animal is believed to be a leopard.
The partially eaten body of V. Periyasamy, a resident of Bungalow Thotti, was found along a stream near the forest fringes under the Hasanur Range of the Hasanur Forest Division of the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR) on October 4.
Residents suspect that a leopard was responsible, citing a series of cattle kills in villages in the area. However, the Forest Department is yet to confirm the species. Following the incident, residents staged a protest demanding immediate action to capture the animal.
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