THOOTHUKUDI: With frequent snake interruptions haunting the Thoothukudi public following the aftermath of the December 2023 floods, salt pan workers have complained that snake catchers have been releasing the snakes, caught from the houses in Thoothukudi corporation wards, into marshy lands nearby salt pans along south beach road, putting the workers in peril. Pedestrians walking through the crossings along the beach road also claimed to have sighted the reptiles, particularly in the wee hours.
Speaking to TNIE, J Pusham, a woman salt pan worker, claimed that they (workers) often sight snakes crossing the roads and moving through salt pans and canals in the wee hours. Snakes were also spotted slithering inside salt pan sheds built of thatched leaves, she said, adding that the spotted ones were beaten to death.
"It has been worrisome for the salt pan workers, especially women, who wade through sandy paths, canals bunds, thorny bushes and creeks to make their way to the salt pans in the wee hours," said S Lingammal, vice president of CITU salt pan workers association. Having witnessed a large snake at her house in Rajapandi Nagar recently, she added that snake sightings along thorny bushes around the salt pans have increased after the December floods.
Apart from the workers, commuters and joggers who walk through the tracks along the Roche park and beach road, expressed anguish as they often noticed snake movement. These snakes also get subjected to roadkills on the beach roads.
Rameswaran Mariappan, a snake catcher, said that the snakes which had entered the city during the December 2023 floods might have proliferated now. "These snakes should not be beaten to death, rather rescued. The district administration must take necessary steps to properly release snakes into the deep forests, as releasing them in the vicinity is of no use," he added.
When asked, an official of the fire and safety rescue department said that they receive at least 3-4 calls for snake rescue from Thoothukudi town regularly. The frequently rescued snakes include Sara pambu (rat snake), Komberi Mookan snake (bronzeback tree snake), Pacha pambu (green vine snake) and other non-venomous snakes. Poisonous snakes are rescued only rarely, the official added.
Denying the release of snakes along the beach road, officials claimed that the snakes caught are being released into the thorny briers on the outskirts of the city. The poisonous snakes are handed over to the forest department for releasing them into deep forests," the official added.
Wishing anonymity, a fire and safety rescue personnel told TNIE that they leave the snakes into the thorny bushes of remote locations, only when the forest department fails to receive the snakes. When contacted, the District Forest Officer Revati Raman refused to comment on the matter.