International Women’s Day: Meet a few certified women snake rescuers from Kerala

Anusree Babu catches the cobra by the process with her near hand. As the snake writhes successful a bid to flight her grip, she lifts it with the curved extremity of the instrumentality she holds successful her close hand, and takes it adjacent a cloth container with a tube inside. The reptile mistakes it for a burrow and instantly slithers in. As she closes the bag, the assemblage breaks into applause.

It is simply a mean time astatine enactment for Anusree, a certified pistillate snake rescuer from Kozhikode. She is among the 140-odd women snake rescuers trained by the app, SARPA (Snake Awareness Rescue and Protection App), an inaugural of the Department of Forests, Government of Kerala, which focusses connected ‘reptile conservation portion ensuring quality safety’.

Since its motorboat successful 2020, implicit 3400 radical person taken the licence of which 1500 are active. “This see officers from the Department, particularly the Rapid Response Team (RRT), and radical from antithetic walks of life. Among the second are teachers, students, regular wage labourers, taxi drivers, businessmen, lawyers, scientists, researchers etc. Although a male-dominated field, the fig of women volunteers is increasing,” says Muhammed Anvar, State Nodal Officer, SARPA, and Assistant Conservator, Biodiversity Cell.

Anyone aged betwixt 18 and 65 tin acquisition grooming by registering successful SARPA. “Even aft the training, they necessitate mentoring earlier they spell solo. This is simply a precocious hazard enactment and truthful they travel experienced handlers initially earlier becoming independent,” Anvar adds.

SARPA was launched with the purpose of zero deaths owed to snake bites. The State is location to 132 snake varieties, which autumn into highly venomous, venomous and non-venomous categories. Since its launch, implicit 72,000 snakes person been rescued done SARPA, helium adds.

A look for snake rescue these days is Roshni GS, bushed wood serviceman with the RRT, Paruthipally, Thiruvananthapuram, acknowledgment to the videos she posts connected her societal media relationship each day. The 39-year-old, precocious awarded with the Sthree Shakthi Award 2025 by Kerala Women’s Commission, grabbed eyeballs past twelvemonth with the video of however she rescued a 15-foot King Cobra. Among the millions who appreciated her was cricket fable Sachin Tendulkar, president of Mahindra Group Anand Mahindra, writer-politician Shashi Tharoor, and respective celebrities. “I americium the archetypal pistillate successful my section to acquisition technological grooming successful snake rescue. When I joined the unit successful 2019, reptile rescue grooming was not mandatory dissimilar now. But erstwhile an accidental came my mode I didn’t fto it go. I person rescued implicit a 1,000 snakes till date. Since I americium successful the RRT, we rescue different chaotic animals besides — elephant, Indian bison, tiger, bear, peacock, deer, porcupine, monkey, civet and more,” she says.

While the King Cobra is seldom recovered successful the open, the commonly-seen varieties are cobra, Russell’s viper, soil boa, wolf snake, krait, trinket, rat snake etc.

The senior-most among the volunteers is Vidya Raju, a erstwhile superior schoolhouse teacher and homemaker, based successful Kochi. Vidya, who has her roots successful Bihar and joined to Commodore NVS Raju (retired) successful the Indian Navy, recalls that she developed the involvement erstwhile her hubby was posted astatine INS Mandovi, Goa, successful aboriginal 2000. “I was into vertebrate watching and 1 subordinate of the radical utilized to rescue reptiles. Watching him successful enactment inspired maine to instrumentality it up. I learnt the method and started rescuing snakes adjacent aft we moved from Goa to different units of the Navy. Kerala became location successful 2004 and I continued to bash it whenever the request arose. It was aft I registered successful SARPA successful 2020 that I realised that I was not pursuing the technological method till then. SARPA ensures the information of the rescuer and the reptile,” says Vidya. She has rescued implicit 450 snakes aft getting the licence, successful summation to the aforesaid fig she rescued earlier that.

In the lawsuit of Savitha Sudhi from Alappuzha, she responds to the calls successful the midst of fulfilling her responsibilities arsenic a three-time subordinate of Chunakkara panchayat. She is the archetypal pistillate from the territory to get the licence. “Being a panchayat subordinate I americium often called to locations wherever determination are snake sightings. That is wherefore erstwhile SARPA grooming was announced, I decided to attend. Also, it was unfastened to everybody. However, I didn’t expect to get the licence since I was rather apprehensive astir whether I volition beryllium capable to successfully usher the snake into the cloth container astatine the extremity of the training,” she says.

Coming backmost to Anusree, she has had a peculiar link with snakes since childhood, having lived adjacent to ineffable groves. “Snake sightings were common, adjacent wrong my house. Once my parent accidentally stepped connected a babe cobra astatine night. While my parents got scared, I took a coconut ammunition ladle and guided it into a solid bottle. That was my archetypal snake rescue, astatine the property of 10. That aptitude remained during my increasing up years. But I ne'er went for a rescue extracurricular of my location until I got the licence.”

What led to it was her relation with the Fire and Rescue bureau astatine Vellimadukunnu successful the territory arsenic a civilian defence volunteer. “Fellow officers knew I rescued snakes and they suggested I should be SARPA training.” Her rescue number is 945 and counting.

The occupation entails much than being brave, the rescuers constituent out. “You should truly emotion it and beryllium alert of the risks,” Roshni says, adding, “Many women successful my section who person taken the licence are nary longer progressive due to the fact that of nonrecreational and idiosyncratic commitments. One should beryllium acceptable to respond to a telephone astatine immoderate clip of the day. I americium obsessed with this occupation to specified an grade that astatine times it becomes much important than my family. I bask taking up assignments astatine night!”

The rescuers are advised to deterioration boots and pants/track pants and T-shirts portion astatine work. “Avoid dupattas if you are wearing salwar-kurta. Saris are a strict no-no. It is amended not to deterioration bangles oregon bracelets due to the fact that the snake mightiness clasp connected to it with its process portion trying to escape,” Savitha points out.

The rescuers unanimously accidental that SARPA has brought astir a important alteration successful people’s mindset towards snakes. “The innate fearfulness not withstanding, they bash not bushed them to death. They pass america immediately, adjacent if it is simply a rat snake, which is non-venomous,” says Vidya.

While cobra is the commonly-seen species, vipers are unsafe due to the fact that they tin onslaught successful immoderate absorption astatine break-neck speed. Pythons are heavy, particularly aft a dense meal. “When we drawback it by the tail, it vomits the nutrient truthful that it tin escape. Rat snakes, though non-venomous, wound you, which tin beryllium highly painful,” Roshni says. And during the mating season, you mightiness extremity up uncovering much than 1 snake by the clip you scope the location.

A snake cannot beryllium rescued ever arsenic sometimes it volition beryllium sitting successful positions non-accessible for the rescuer, similar the tiny gaps betwixt the bricks of a partition oregon level tiles. It is impractical to propulsion down an full operation to instrumentality the reptile out.

Vidya says that she gets a batch of calls to rescue snakes stuck successful sportfishing nets, pythons especially. Cutting unfastened the nett and taking them retired is difficult; it tin beryllium rather unsafe too, she says.

All the women constituent retired that a pistillate snake rescuer piques people’s curiosity. “But they are respectful too. I don’t hold to airs for photographs with the snake though,” Vidya says.

According to Anusree, immoderate radical similar a pistillate rescuer implicit a male. “Especially successful households wherever determination are lone women. They find it comfy to person a pistillate around.” Savitha mentions that these days women travel up to her to larn however she rescues and are anxious to travel her erstwhile a rescue telephone comes.

Roshni is elated that those who called her videos gross present look guardant for them. “I started doing it to alleviate fearfulness of snakes, support people’s involvement successful them and marque them recognize however important they are successful our nutrient chain,” she says.

Some of these rescuers, including Vidya and Anusree, are educators associated with Sarpa Padam, a snake-related consciousness programme of SARPA nether which classes are held successful acquisition institutions. The Department has a 70-member squad to instrumentality the classes via a standardised power-point presentation. Classes are conducted for susceptible sections specified arsenic those moving nether the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Scheme, farmers etc, who are prone to snake bites.

“The relation of snakes successful the ecological system, laws related to snakes, identifying snake varieties, precautions to support distant snakes, however to woody with snake bites, breaking myths associated with snakes etc are dealt with astatine the sessions,” says Vidya.

The family’s enactment means a batch for these rescuers. “They are highly pleased astir what I do; my grandson is rather excited my work,” Vidya adds. While Anusree has inspired galore to instrumentality the training, including her 18-year-old daughter, Punnyakeerthi M, Savitha has the institution of her husband, Sudhi R, and his cousin, Harilal.

“We are successful it knowing the information involved. This is simply a work and though determination person been requests for an security strategy thing has travel retired of it,” Anusree says.

There is simply a consciousness of pridefulness among these women astir what they do. “I americium blessed to beryllium capable to bash thing for the nine successful this beingness time,” Vidya says.

Download SARPA and successful lawsuit of snake sightings, interaction the respective numbers successful each territory connected the app.

| Video Credit: Special Arrangement