Nashik (Maharashtra), Sep 6 (IANS):  In a happy ending to a potential tragedy, the Forest Department successfully rescued a domestic cat and a leopard after they accidentally fell into a 15-metre-deep well in Maharashtra's Nashik, officials said on Monday.

The incident happened late on Saturday when an adult leopard was apparently chasing the cat and in the blind rush, both the felines landed inside the open well, situated in a farm in Kankori village near Sinnar.

On Sunday morning, the locals heard the desperate cat's meowing and the leopard's growls and alerted the Forest Department, Deputy Conservator of Forests, Nashik, Pankaj Garg, said.

A rescue team rushed to the spot, examined the site, and launched a rescue operation to save the two hungry and shaken feline cousins, staring upward with hope.

After an operation lasting over 5 hours, both the animals were safety brought out and medically examined for any injuries, but none were detected.

Garg said that despite confronting each other inside the well, the leopard did not harm its potential prey, the cat, and both were released into their natural habitats later, even as the local farmers and villagers heaved a sigh of relief.