Shravan Krishnan was on his way to a home in Thiruvanmiyur as I arrived at the Annie Besant Memorial Animal Dispensary. I could not have chosen a more righteous moment, as he was out to rescue a snake, and I was out to profile him on the eve of World Snake Day. Curious to catch him in action. I asked if I could accompany him to the spot, to which he replied "yes".
Creepy beginnings
As we drove to the spot, Shravan expounded on animal rehabilitation, his penchant for rescuing snakes and how he made it his life's calling. "Watching people like Steve Irwin and Jeff Corwin on television when I was growing up got me interested in this area. So I began by volunteering at the Madras Crocodile Bank every weekend. The educational officer there was Gowrishankar, dubbed the ‘King Cobra Man of India' because of his expertise in handling king cobras. I learnt the technique of handling and rescuing snakes from him," he recalls.
For the past ten years, he has been working in tandem with the Forest Department on snake rescue missions, and for the past five years, he's been working out of the Besant Memorial Animal Dispensary where, apart from rescuing snakes, he rehabilitates injured animals as well.
"Myths and superstitions abound around snakes, and these are repeatedly enforced through popular culture, especially the damaging stereotype of snakes as vengeful creatures. Snakes prefer to stay away from conflict, and they don’t attack unless they feel threatened," he said.
Risk in rescue
Shravan asserts it is a risky job and that he was fortunate to have been trained by people who taught him the right techniques. "There are hundreds of snake catchers all over India, but very few are professionally trained, and even fewer are ethical in their approach. It is important that you use the right tools - a hook, a proper bag etc. - to catch them and do it without showmanship, which is unfortunately how a lot of people do it," he elaborates.
We were now at the house where the snake was allegedly spotted in the kitchen. As a terrified family waited in the living room, Shravan began work, hook in hand, rummaging through every shelf, cabinet, and a dustbin where the family said they spotted the snake hiding.
A thorough search produced no results. The kitchen had a door that opened into the backyard, and Shravan assumed it must have slithered through this door. So much for hoping to watch a snake nabbed by professional hands.
Training on ethics
Must have been a rat snake, Shravan said as he searched outside the house. Kitchens and drains are attractive places for rats and hence, a rat snake can't be far away. But they’re non-venomous, he assures, and are frequent visitors to places inhabited by rats.
On our way back, Shravan was back to the topic of unethical practices around snake-catching. "Snake catchers obviously attract crowds, and when they combine showmanship with unethical practices like holding a venomous snake without protection and kissing them, they end up sending the wrong message. People then begin to imitate these methods and put themselves in grave danger," he rued.
Anybody who approaches his dispensary for volunteer work is first given the right training before being sent on rescue missions.
A decade’s experience has taught Shravan the types of snakes that inhabit different parts of the city, and the times when different snakes venture out in the open. "Snakes that live in human habitations are naturally attuned to our work timings and, not the type to seek conflict, knows when it is appropriate to venture out for prey," he asserts.
On the occasion of Snake Day, which falls on July 16, Shravan will deliver a talk at the Chennai Snake Park at 10:30 am on snake bite mitigation and conflicts between humans and snakes. "Do make it if you're able to," he requests.