Wild animal terror: Missing 6-year-old found dead; parents blame TTD for negligence

Tirumala: A six-year-old girl was found dead after she went missing on the Alipiri-Tirumala pedestrian route on Friday night, Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) officials said that she was killed by a a leopard.

The incident once again created panic among the pilgrims on the steps route.

The incident occurred when a family from Nellore district was walking on the Alipiri-Tirumala pedestrian route on Friday afternoon. The six-year-old, who was accompanying her father Dinesh and mother, Sasikala went missing at around 7 pm.

Assuming that she was kidnapped, her parents immediately lodged a complaint. Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) police, security personnel, and forest staff immediately swung into action and launched a search operation.

At around 4 a.m. on Saturday, the girl’s body was found near Narasimha Swamy temple with severe animal attack marks. The body was sent to Sri Venkateswara Ramnarayan Ruia Government General Hospital for post-mortem.

"We received a missing report on Friday night. Immediately, we started a rescue operation along the pedestrian route and forest area. We were told by a pilgrim that a girl's body was lying in suspicious condition. We would get more details after a post-mortem report," said the police.

According to the forest officials, the attacks on the girl are suspected to be of a bear.

"CCTV footage shows the girl was walking ahead of their parents alone. She is walking isolated. We advise the parents not to leave children alone, especially during the night, and secure them in groups," said the police.

Speaking to the media, the victim’s relative blamed TTD officials for the incident. She questioned why the officials hadn't erected a fence to avoid animal attacks after the boy was mauled in June.

Seshalam-- a home for leopards/bears

Eastern Ghats and the Seshachalam forest located near Tirupati are home to many leopards and bears. This is probably the first incident of animal attack death in Tirumala. Earlier, too, there were animal attacks, but there were no deaths.

A similar incident happened on June 24, 2022, when a three-year-old boy was attacked and dragged by a leopard near the 7th mile along the Alipiri-Tirumala pedestrian route. Fortunately, the immediate rescue action by the TTD personnel helped in saving the boy alive.

A week ago, a bear was spotted on the Alipiri-Tirumala pedestrian trail in Tirupati near the deer park at around 1 a.m. The video went viral on social media.

According to the TTD officials, to track the animal movement, the forest department has installed camera traps in the vicinity, some of which are equipped with technology to sound an alarm on sighting a leopard.

This is a developing story.