A clever leopard quickly avoided being trapped in a cage.

CCTV footage shows the wild cat wandering around a compound in Rajasthan, India, on the evening of January 6.

It can be seen entering the enclosure, but when it realised the hatch was closing, the feline quickly escaped and ran back to the jungle.

Local media reported that the forest department had set up a cage due to the animal's presence in the populated area of the city.

One of the forest rangers said: 'It came in twice that night, and we had almost caught it because the second time it wandered into the area, it also curiously entered the cage but still managed to escape.'

The leopard population in India has grown from 12,852 in 2018, to 13,874 in 2022, according to the 'Status of Leopards in India 2022' report, released by the Union Environment Ministry on February 29.

The development of homes in and around forests has led to an increase in conflicts with humans.