Jaipur, Nov 27 : A day after a leopard was spotted in Jaipur's Vidhyadhar Nagar, a big cat was seen in the residential area of the Pink City on Thursday, triggering panic.

CCTV cameras captured the leopard roaming near Sikar House in Shastri Nagar, where it was seen crossing a road in Kalyan Colony and walking on the rooftop of a house.

Acting on CCTV footage, Forest Department teams launched a search operation around a plot in C-Block, Sikar House, but were unable to trace the leopard.

Officials said the search continued for over five hours.

Residents said, "There is an atmosphere of fear and anxiety across the area after the leopard's movement."

According to Forest Department officials, the leopard may have wandered into the populated area from the Nahargarh forest range and possibly returned to the forest by early morning.

On November 20, another leopard had entered the VVIP Civil Lines area, which houses the residences of the Governor, Chief Minister and several ministers.

Residents said several CCTV cameras along the Sikar House main road and Kalyan Colony captured the leopard's movement.

Around 6 a.m., the continuous barking of dogs alerted locals. When some stepped outside to check, they could not see anything in the dark. Later, CCTV footage revealed the leopard moving across rooftops and streets. It later entered a school and was tranquilised after several hours.

The leopard was finally tranquillised inside a house in Lane No. 6 at around 11 a.m., after which the teams were seen busy preparing to transport it to Jhalana Reserve.

Leopard sightings have been reported from several parts of Jaipur in recent months, including Civil Lines, Vidyadhar Nagar, Durgapura, Gopalpura, Jaisinghpura, Jagatpura, Malviya Nagar Industrial Area and Kho Nagorian.

Forest officials said the frequent movement is linked to declining prey availability in nearby forest areas, pushing leopards closer to settled human zones.

Wildlife experts believe that shrinking habitat and scarcity of prey in forested regions have pushed leopards closer to human settlements.

/IANS