Chennai, Oct 19 : In a tragic incident, a 6-year-old girl, the daughter of migrant workers, was dragged and mauled to death by a leopard in front of her hapless parents at Valparai in Tamil Nadu's Coimbatore district, officials said.

The deceased girl has been identified as Apsara Khatun, the daughter of Jharkhand natives Nasiran Khatun and Athul Ansari, who worked at the Uzhimala estate,

The child was dragged by the leopard into the forest while her parents looked on helplessly.

Police and forest officers reached the spot, drove away the leopard, and rushed the child to the hospital.

Unfortunately, the child was declared dead upon arrival at the hospital.

There have been several instances of human-animal conflict in the Valparai area of Coimbatore, with wild elephants, leopards, and wild boars frequently entering human settlements.

Local social activist Mariappan. M. told IANS, said: "We have been updating the Forest Department on the presence of leopards and wild elephants in the area. We demand stringent action by the Forest Department to prevent the entry of wild animals into human settlements and to avoid such incidents."

/IANS