Mumbai, June 15 -- Residents of a Dindoshi Mhada colony, located along the boundary of Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), woke up to an unwelcome visitor on Friday after a leopard wandered into the housing complex around 1.10 am. The animal prowled the premises for nearly an hour, tried to attack a pet cat, and then retreated into the adjoining forest. The colony comprises 28 residential buildings and bungalows and houses over 5,000 people. Residents said the animal approached a Persian cat inside the grilled enclosure of a ground-floor flat but fled after a resident raised an alarm. "It was trying to get at the cat through the grill, I opened the grill and saw the leopard. The moment it saw me, I started shouting, and it ran away," said a resident who witnessed the incident. Devendra Chaturvedi, a resident, said the sighting has left many families anxious. "My daughter returns home late because of her work shifts. I have stayed awake over the last few nights because of concerns about the leopard," he said. Residents said this was the first leopard sighting inside the colony this year, though encounters with the animal have been reported in the area over the years. Deepak Birhade, former secretary of Nisarg Housing Society where the leopard was spotted, said the animal has long frequented the neighbourhood. "The leopard has been coming here for many years. It has never attacked any person. So far, it has only preyed on cats and dogs within the colony," he said. "We tell parents not to allow children to play outside after 10 pm. At the same time, we must remember that we have encroached upon the animal's habitat and are now witnessing the consequences," Vivek Mishra, secretary of the society said. Following an inspection on Sunday, forest officials said they are trying to identify how the leopard entered the colony and whether those access points can be restricted. While some residents expressed concern, wildlife volunteers stressed that the situation should not be seen as a conflict. "The movement of leopards in areas bordering the national park is natural. There has been no attack on any person. If residents follow basic precautions, the risk remains negligible," said Sonu Singh of Mumbaikars for SGNP....