Thiruvananthapuram: Snake-catchers in Kerala will, henceforth, need a licence to catch the reptiles. Else, they could end up in jail.
The Kerala government has decided to issue licences to snake-catchers. The law will be modified to make catching a snake without a licence an offence that would be punishable with up to three years in prison.
The guidelines will be issued in a week.
The move by the forest department comes amid the increasing incidents of people putting themselves in danger by indulging in catching snakes unscientifically.
On Sunday, Zakir Hussain, a snake-catcher, died after being bitten by a cobra while he was trying to catch it in Navaikulam. He had earlier been bitten by snakes 12 times.
Vava Suresh, another snake-catcher, has also ended up in hospitals many times after being bitten by snakes.
Snake-catchers often suffer a bite because they don’t work with safety equipment and when they get distracted and lose concentration while displaying their catch to the public.
With the new guidelines, a snake-catcher, no matter how famous he is, cannot display snakes in front of the public in a way that could endanger safety. A snake will have to be caught with all necessary protective equipment and it should then be released in the forest.
The forest department plans to issue the snake-catcher licences at the district levels. Applications will be invited at the district level and the applicants will be given training before issuing them the licence. The department will make sure that all those being given the licence have safety equipment.
The details of those with a licence will be given to local establishments, the police, fire force and resident associations. When they fear a threat from a snake, they can call these licence-holders.
Forest department officials said that snake-catchers will be given a year’s time to undergo the training and obtain the licence. The law will be enforced only after this. Till then, the department will carry out awareness programmes, the officials said.
According to existing laws, no one can display a captured snake in public or keep it with them. If there is a threat to life, the authorities should be informed about it and the snake should then be caught and released in a forest.
The forest department has over 100 officials, including ACFs, who are trained to catch snakes scientifically.
Although many cases of snake-catchers displaying their exploits to the public have come to the attention of the officials before, they preferred not to take any action. But, armed with the new law, they will ensure public safety is not compromised, they said.
