Manipal: Python caught and handed over to forest dept

By Snehalatha, Udupi
Bellevision Media Network

Manipal, 22 July 2012: In the concrete jungle of Manipal some trees have been grown around the Venugopal temple, among them a palae tree drew attraction of the local and foreign students and also the local people on Saturday, because a huge python had climbed and seated on top of that tree.

 
The local people had come to know about this python which was wandering in this area on Friday evening itself and they had called the snake expert Gururaja Sanil. But since it was dark Gururaj could not do anything. On Saturday morning this snake had climbed and seated on top of the tree. People who came to the garden where this tree is located got scared.

 

 

Later the local Manipal University Security department informed about this to the forest department. The forest department then called Gururaj, who came and tried to get it down for about one hour. Then a local youth Udaya Jumadi took courage, he climbed on the tree and cut down the branch of the tree where the python was seated. The python fell down along with the branch of tree. Gururaj caught it and handed it over to the forest department.

 
As per the snake expert Gururaj, the python is 14 feet long, weighs 30 kg, it is a female python and climbed the tree for food. On the tree it ate some eggs of the birds and was sitting there. Since it is the season of pythons laying eggs, there are possibilities that this female python could also be pregnant, he said.

 
Usually the pythons will not harm anybody but if anybody instigates it then it can attach back. Its teeth are facing inward, so any animal caught in its teeth will be difficult to have it released, said Gururaj.

 
Hundreds of local and foreign students and also local people had gathered there to see this python. Among them some people entertained by giving free suggestions in the process of catching the python.