11-year-old boy fights off leopard in Palghar forest; school bag saves his life
Palghar (PTI) An 11-year-old schoolboy displayed exemplary courage as he fought back a menacing leopard with the help of his friend by hurling stones and raising an alarm, which forced the big cat to beat a hasty retreat in Palghar district of Maharashtra, officials said on Saturday.
The encounter could have had worse consequences had Mayank Kuvara not been carrying his school bag, which turned out to be a protective shield when the big cat pounced on him on Friday evening near the Mala Padvipada area.
"A leopard attacked Kuvara, a class 5 student, when he was returning from school. He and another boy fought back with brave cries and threw stones", officials confirmed.
The commotion and the swift reaction of the children alerted people who ran to the scene, causing the leopard to flee back into the forest.
Kuvara suffered a claw injury to his hand and is currently undergoing treatment at Vikramgad Rural Hospital. A medical officer said the boy has received stitches for the injury.
Resident Forest Officer, Kanchad, Swapnil Mohite told PTI today that forest officials immediately rushed to the spot and later to the hospital where the boy was taken.
The Forest Department is taking the incident seriously and is implementing several preventive measures, he added.
The Forest Department has requested schools in leopard-prone areas to shut down by 4 PM.
Mohite said an AI-enabled camera is being installed to track the movement of the big cat, while villages are being alerted through traditional "Davandi" (public announcements).
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Rupee falls 9 paise to all-time low of 90.58 against US dollar in early trade
Mumbai (PTI): Rupee depreciated 9 paise to an all-time low of 90.58 against US dollar in early trade on Monday, weighed down by uncertainty over an India-US trade deal and persistent foreign fund outflows.
Forex traders said rupee is trading with a negative bias as investors are in wait and watch mode and awaiting cues from the India-US trade deal front.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 90.53 against the US dollar, then fell further to an all-time intraday low of 90.58 against the greenback, registering a fall of 9 paise over its previous close.
On Friday, the rupee had slipped 17 paise to close at an all-time low of 90.49 against the American currency.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.05 per cent lower at 98.35.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading higher by 0.52 per cent at USD 61.44 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share benchmark index Sensex was trading 298.86 points lower at 84,968.80, while the Nifty was down 121.40 points at 25,925.55.
Foreign Institutional Investors sold equities worth Rs 1,114.22 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.
"FPIs continue to be in selling mode in equity and debt while RBI has been selling dollars to fund their long positions," said Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.
