CHENNAI: Three temporary staff members of the Chennai corporation, who were involved in carrying out a COVID-19 census in Villivakkam, were detained by forest department officials on Wednesday for allegedly killing and burning a non-venomous rat snake.
The rat snake, a Schedule 2 species under the Wildlife Protection Act, had entered a house of an elderly resident. The house owner, instead of calling snake rescuers in the forest department or the Chennai corporation, sought the help of the three men who were conducting a census in the area.
They took matters into their own hands and beat the snake to death. Further, they went ahead and burnt the snake. The sequence of events was captured on the CCTV of the house opposite and the footage was sent to the forest department for action.
Forest ranger V Mohan told The New Indian Express that after verifying the CCTV footage and inquiring, all three involved were detained. "They are aged between 25-34 and joined the corporation for census work on a temporary basis. They claimed that they were trying to help the elderly resident and when the snake moved between their legs, they killed it. It is a Schedule 2 species and killing it is an offence. It's up to the higher authorities to arrest them or let them off with a stern warning."
Kaushik Srinivas, who lodged a formal compliant and gave the CCTV footage, said killing snakes has become common in his area and called for strict action against the culprits.
If a snake has entered your premises, call Forest Department officers on +91 9444358969/ +91 9566184292 or Professional snake rescuers. Chennai Wildlife Rescue volunteers can be reached on +91 7845018969 and +91 9884461090.