MUZAFFARABAD: Residents of a suburban locality blocked the Jhelum Valley Road for about an hour on Saturday to protest the killing of their livestock in a leopard attack, before dispersing after assurances from the wildlife department and local administration.

A resident of Tandaali, Junaid Mughal, told Dawn by phone that a leopard descended on a terraced field along a house at 11am and killed two calves. Tandaali, a scenic town, lies around 10 kilometres from Muzaffarabad along the Jhelum Valley Road.

The affected owner and his neighbours placed the carcasses of the calves on the road, triggering a blockade that led to long queues of vehicles on both sides. According to Mr Mughal, the protesters were venting their anger at the wildlife department.

“Such incidents have occurred repeatedly in Tandaali. The department was informed in time, but no action was taken,” he said.

He added that people of modest means, who struggled to make ends meet, could not afford to bear such losses and urged the authorities to take preventive measures.

“If we kill the dangerous animal, we are booked in a case; if we don’t, it kills our livestock. It is not unlikely that one day an innocent child or adult may also fall prey to it,” he warned.

When contacted, wildlife monitoring officer Dr Shaisha Ali said assistant commissioner Hammad Bashir, accompanied by the officials from her department, reached out to the affected resident and assured him that steps would be taken to address the loss.

“At present, we do not have a dedicated fund to compensate such victims. We forward such cases, along with our reports, to the district administration, which provides compensation under the head of natural calamities,” she said.

She added that the department had formulated its own compensation rules, which were in the final stages of approval by the finance department.

“Once approved, we will be able to provide financial assistance directly to those affected by wildlife,” she said.

Published in Dawn, March 29th, 2026