Wild cats with a saree affinity
-Chalo Mumbai News correspondent report

Two panthers strayed onto the asbestos sheet roof of a saree printing unit, on the periphery of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park in Thane. The sheets gave way and the two panthers were trapped amidst tins of dyes in the premises of Zig Chemicals. According to forest officials, the two felines were trapped inside the factory for over two days, before they were finally released on Monday night.

When employees opened the factory on Monday morning, coloured pug marks were noticed all over the place. The officials from the nearby Ghodbunder forest office were summoned immediately, who confirmed the presence of two big cats. The forest officials decided to wait till nightfall to drive the cats away. Said Sameer Deshpande, Thane Range officer, When someone said that he had seen one panther go away, we geared up to drive away the one still inside. Only the door of the factory was kept open and firecrackers were lit to scare the cat away.

But the feline did not come out. In an attempt to bait the cat, the forest officials tied a goat to a nearby tree. Hearing the bleating, the panther came out. However, the flash of a waiting photographer s camera scared the cat and he bolted into the forest. Said Deshpande., When we went inside the factory to see the damage done by the prowling panther, we were shocked to see another one staring at us. The panther looked more scared to be surrounded by the group of men and sprang towards the door and vanished into the forest.

According to Deshpande, the panthers were a male and a female, aged four and seven years, respectively. Incidentally, according to the factory workers, another panther had strayed into the factory about eight years ago.