Indian woman, 56, fights off leopard with nothing more than a sickle
Leopard attacks in Uttarakhand are not rare - but surviving them is
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A woman in northern India, who was armed with only basic farm tools, has somehow managed to fight off and kill a leopard that pounced on her as she was carrying water. Kamla Devi, 56, said she fought with the animal for more than half an hour using a sickle.
“I thought I was dead but I did not lose patience and courage,” she told reporters from the hospital bed where she was being treated for multiple bites and fractures.
Reports said the animal attacked Ms Devi as she was carrying water from a canal to her home in the Rudraprayag district in the state of Uttarakhand on Sunday. She then began to hit the animal and smashed some of its teeth.
Ms Devi said she had continued to pound at the animal until she became exhausted. She then limped bleeding to the nearest village. Villagers who then went to the scene of the attack found the body of the leopard.
Doctors said Ms Devi had two fractures on the right hand and one break in the left. There were injuries to her head and legs and she required up to 50 stitches.
Leopard attacks in this part of northern India are not rare; what is uncommon is for somebody to survive such an assault. The case of a person killing a leopard with their bare hands and a simple sickle may be unprecedented.
Pankaj Bist, one of the villagers who helped take Ms Devi to the HNB Base Hospital, told the BBC: “It was around 10 in the morning when she went to the field. A leopard pounced on her."
He added: “She is very brave. She attacked the leopard and took the fight head on with her sickle.”
In the past week, leopards have killed one woman elsewhere in Uttarakhand, and injured another in the Rudraprayag area. Villagers say leopards are now more visible around human settlements as the big cats’ habitat is increasingly encroached upon.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments