In Kerala, a snakebite that sparked a change

On October 10, pursuing successful the footsteps of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, Kerala declared snakebite envenomation a illness of nationalist wellness importance nether the Kerala Public Health Act, 2023. This notification is successful accordance with the Centre’s directive to instrumentality the 2024 National Action Plan for Snakebite Envenoming, an inaugural to halve snakebite-related deaths successful India by 2030. Of the astir 78,600 snakebite deaths annually reported worldwide, implicit 64,000 deaths hap successful India, according to a survey published successful the peer-reviewed journal, Nature Communications, successful 2022.

Dr. Ajan M.J., Assistant Director, Health and Family Welfare Department, who is the State nodal serviceman for snakebite envenomation management, says the notification volition alteration much close tracking of snakebite cases, including their frequency, severity, and geographic spread. “This, successful turn, volition supply clearer epidemiological insights by revealing trends, hotspots, and susceptible populations. More importantly, it volition assistance america guarantee capable banal of ASV (anti-snake venom) successful high-incidence regions and successful boosting infirmary readiness,” helium says.

This infinitesimal did not look retired of nowhere. It was shaped, painfully and irrevocably, by a series of events that forced the State to face the outgo of human-wildlife conflict.

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Danger successful a crevice

On the greeting of November 20, 2019, Shehala Sherin, 10, acceptable retired for schoolhouse with a luncheon container successful hand. Sherin, a Class 5 pupil astatine the Government Sarvajana Vocational Higher Secondary School successful Sulthan Bathery successful Wayanad district, was accompanied by her relative Nihal N. Firoz, besides 10 years old.

On that chill afternoon, erstwhile she was successful the classroom, Sherin’s ft slipped into a crevice beneath her bench. She cried out. Her parents Abdul Azis N.V. and Sajna Aysha aboriginal learnt that a venomous snake curled up determination had bitten her.

“A spot that should person been a haven for our kid became the opening of our nightmare,” says Azis, recalling the worst time of his life.

To marque matters worse, determination was a hold successful taking Sherin to the hospital. “She was lying successful symptom arsenic radical stood confused astir her. I arrived astatine the schoolhouse astatine 3:50 (p.m.) and took her to the hospital.” Sherin had been bitten astir 40 minutes earlier. There was already redness and swelling successful that country and she was successful disposable pain.

They rushed the kid to a backstage infirmary nearby, which referred her to the Sulthan Bathery Taluk Hospital, astir 2 kilometres away. “While the infirmary had an capable banal of ASV, they did not person ventilator support,” says Azis. The doctors recommended that she beryllium taken to the Kozhikode Government Medical College, astir 90 km away.

“Her information had deteriorated rapidly by then. On the way, the ambulance went to the Vythiri Taluk Hospital, wherever doctors again said they could not grip the case,” Azis says. From there, Sherin was shifted to a backstage infirmary successful Chelod, astir 5 km away. At 6:15 p.m., she was pronounced dead.

“The schoolroom level had cracks and nary pest power checks had been carried out,” alleges Azis. “No 1 took work for the information of children successful that school. Not the teachers, not the administration.”

The incidental exposed the inability of the State to grip snakebite cases adjacent though 123 radical had died of snakebite during 2018-2019. The preventable decease of a kid led the Kerala High Court to initiate suo moto proceedings connected December 9, 2019. This resulted successful large schoolhouse infrastructural upgrades and information guidelines.

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Using snakes arsenic a weapon

Just months aft Sherin’s death, a snakebite again dominated headlines successful Kerala. In May 2020, a slope clerk from Kollam city, Sooraj Kumar, utilized a venomous snake to termination his wife, Uthra. He clutched the Indian cobra by its hood and pressed it adjacent Uthra portion she was sleeping. The agitated snake spot her twice, sidesplitting her. Cobra venom tin termination a idiosyncratic successful hours by paralysing respiratory muscles.

This was not Kumar’s archetypal effort astatine sidesplitting his wife, the probe revealed. Two months earlier, helium had tried to termination Uthra by releasing a Russell’s viper, different venomous snake, into the bedroom. The viper had bitten her, but she survived aft hospitalisation. While that was dismissed by the household arsenic an unfortunate accident, Uthra’s parents filed a constabulary ailment aft her death. The constabulary arrested Kumar.

During their investigation, the constabulary learnt that Kumar had bought the snakes from accepted snake charmers and unlicensed handlers who illegally support chaotic snakes successful captivity. His motive was to get clasp of Uthra’s golden and assertion her beingness security payout. The Additional District and Sessions Court-VI, Kollam, deemed the lawsuit “rarest of the rare”, and sentenced Kumar to a treble beingness word on with 17 years of rigorous imprisonment.

Yet different tragic incidental occurred successful July that twelvemonth erstwhile Zakir Hussain, a snake catcher, died aft being bitten by a cobra helium had rescued from a location successful Navaikulam, Thiruvananthapuram. He reportedly carried retired the rescue by grabbing the snake with his bare hands, arsenic was the prevalent signifier then, and displayed it proudly to onlookers. “The snake spot him connected his close wrist and the venom rapidly dispersed done the vein,” says Assistant Conservator of Forests, Muhammed Anwar Y.

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The occurrence of SARPA

Kerala, with its dense tropical forests, extended wetlands, and precocious colonisation density, has for years grappled with the deadly menace of snakebites. The portion is location to much than 130 snake species, of which astir 10 are venomous, according to the Forest Department.

Snake envenoming, often occurring successful cultivation fields, forested areas, and municipality spaces, has ever presented a large wellness challenge. Data from the State Health Department amusement that astir 5,000 cases of snakebites are reported annually successful the State. Yet, the existent figures could beryllium acold higher, with galore snakebite incidents going unreported, peculiarly successful agrarian areas. Besides the quality toll, implicit the past decade, astir 70% of the wildlife-related deaths reported successful Kerala person been owed to snakebites, according to the department.

The deaths of Uthra and Hussain and particularly Sherin were turning points successful the State’s effect to the crisis. “They prompted the Forest Department to motorboat SARPA (Snake Awareness, Rescue, and Protection App) successful August 2020,” Anwar points out. The mobile exertion connects radical with trained rescuers, provides first-aid accusation connected snakebites, and assists radical with identifying snake species.

The elder wood authoritative adds that the inaugural is the archetypal of its benignant successful India. With accepted rescue methods deemed unscientific and risky, snake rescuers and section officials are present trained successful the technological ‘bag and pipe’ method utilizing information gear. This is simply a method that involves the usage of a tube inserted into a sturdy cloth container to usher a snake to information without nonstop carnal contact. So far, astir 6,200 radical person received grooming nether the programme. These see radical from a cross-sections of society, including doctors, professors, advocates, IT professionals, casual labourers, and researchers.

Anwar, who is besides the State nodal serviceman of SARPA, says the inaugural has been successful. “Within 5 years, snakebite-related deaths person reduced from 123 successful 2018-19 to 34 successful 2024-25,” helium says. There person been 14 deaths truthful acold during the ongoing fiscal, with the latest being reported connected November 21, erstwhile an babe was bitten by a cobra successful Malappuram. “Nearly 58,000 snakes person been safely rescued and released backmost into their earthy habitats,” helium adds.

Pramod G. Krishnan, Chief Wildlife Warden, says the caller declaration of snakebite envenomation arsenic a notifiable illness volition beryllium a “shot successful the arm” for Kerala’s extremity of zero snakebite deaths by 2030. The Forest Department is present each acceptable to motorboat the 2nd signifier of SARPA with expanded resources and training.

Environmental and manner shifts person besides contributed to less human-snake encounters. “The elimination of unfastened defecation, near-universal LPG sum and reduced dependence connected firewood, and mechanised farming practices person each helped,” says Dr. Jaideep C. Menon, Professor, Adult Cardiology and Public Health, Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences, Kochi.

Besides, the Local Self Government Department, the General Education Department, and different departments person adopted galore precautionary measures. “Safety audits are being regularly conducted successful schools earlier each world twelvemonth to place and rectify imaginable hazards,” Anwar says.

The State has besides prioritised supplying information equipment, including gumboots and gloves, to Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) workers, fixed the risks of snake encounters successful agrarian regions.

Shyamala M., a MGNREGS idiosyncratic successful Palode, Thiruvananthapuram, points retired that she is present fixed gloves portion carrying retired tasks specified arsenic clearing vegetation. “Last year, 1 of my colleagues was bitten by a hump-nosed pit viper. Incidents similar that utilized to beryllium common,” she says.

Wayanad-based doc Dr. Rajesh Kumar M.P., who besides serves arsenic a SARPA educator, says efforts are being made to dispersed consciousness astir snakes and venomous species, peculiarly among the youth. SARPA Padam, an acquisition programme, is being rolled retired crossed acquisition institutions. Awareness sessions are besides conducted for groups specified arsenic Kudumbasree.

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The hurdles that remain

Despite achieving important advancement successful handling snakes and preventing snakebite-related fatalities, Kerala inactive faces challenges, however.

Nationally, snakebite mitigation mostly centres astir the Big Four snake taxon — the Indian cobra, the communal krait, the Russell’s viper, and the saw-scaled viper. However, successful Kerala, the hump-nosed pit viper is progressively liable for snakebite cases. The viper is an endemic taxon to the Western Ghats.

Dr. Menon attributes the emergence successful hump-nosed pit viper bites to the displacement successful cultivation patterns from paddy cultivation to plantation-based currency crops, specified arsenic rubber and cardamom. The venomous taxon is known to similar cool, moist environments, specified arsenic dense forests and plantations. It is mostly recovered successful leafage litter and heavy bushes.

The polyvalent ASV that is produced successful India utilises venom from the Big Four. However, studies person shown that it is ineffective successful neutralising the venom of the hump-nosed pit viper.

Dr. Menon, who besides heads the ICMR-Collaborative Centre of Excellence successful Snakebite, stresses the request to found determination venom collecting centres. “This is indispensable to amended antivenom accumulation by processing some region-specific and species-specific antivenoms,” helium says.

At present, similar astir different States, Kerala relies connected the ASV produced from the venom extracted by the Irula Snake Catchers’ Industrial Cooperative Society successful Chengalpattu, Tamil Nadu. The Irula are an indigenous assemblage known for their accepted skills successful snake and rat catching. In July 2025, portion inaugurating the World Snake Day observance successful Thiruvananthapuram, Forest Minister A.K. Saseendran announced plans to locally nutrient ASV to code the perceived ineffectiveness of existent antivenoms owed to geographical saltation successful venom potency.

Sustaining SARPA’s momentum is different challenge, according to a elder wood official. Of the 3,300 trained and licensed snake rescuers, less than 1,000 stay active. “While galore snake enthusiasts person undergone grooming successful snake rescue, they are seldom disposable connected abbreviated notice, fixed their regular jobs,” the authoritative says.

A accelerated effect squad (RRT) subordinate successful Pathanamthitta points retired that snake-related emergencies successful the portion are chiefly handled by Forest Department personnel, mostly owed to the deficiency of licensed snake handlers successful the area. While RRT teams person been effectual successful managing a scope of emergencies, their resources are progressively being stretched, peculiarly arsenic wood fringe areas study a emergence successful conflicts involving different chaotic animals specified arsenic elephants and chaotic boars. To code the issue, the section is mulling steps to guarantee astatine slightest 1 progressive licensed snake handler successful each section body.

Persisting aesculapian challenges excessively stay a important obstruction to effectual snakebite management. “There is objective hesitancy successful administering ASV, chiefly owed to fearfulness of anaphylaxis (a severe, life-threatening allergic reaction). This is often linked to inadequate grooming and insufficient infrastructure to negociate complications,” says a wellness officer.

Timely and effectual pre-hospital attraction excessively is captious successful reducing snakebite-related mortality. While exigency services exist, astir snakebite victims inactive trust connected backstage transport. Experts person called for strengthening ambulance services to see snakebite absorption protocols, and for implementing a hub-and-spoke model, wherever assemblage wellness centres and taluk hospitals enactment a web of superior wellness centres.

Herpetologist Sandeep Das says Kerala’s absorption connected snakebite mitigation successful caller times has had a cascading effect connected conservation efforts. “Snakes play a captious relation successful maintaining a steadfast ecosystem by controlling rodent population. This successful crook helps trim the dispersed of zoonotic diseases,” helium says.

Das, who has been actively progressive successful SARPA and Snakepedia, a broad database connected snake taxon recovered successful Kerala, adds that determination has been a perceptible displacement successful nationalist attitudes towards snakes. “Where fearfulness and hostility erstwhile dominated, determination is present a increasing consciousness of consciousness and respect for these often misunderstood reptiles. Increasingly, radical are recognising their ecological value and the request to respond to encounters with technological knowledge, alternatively than fear-driven actions similar sidesplitting them connected sight,” helium says.

As the State pushes towards its extremity of zero snakebites, the systemic overhaul sparked by a child’s decease continues to service arsenic some a cautionary communicative and a catalyst for change.

sarath.bg@thehindu.co.in