The Madras Crocodile Bank Trust and Centre for Herpetology, which is researching venom and anti-venom, has planned to educate people of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Orissa, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh on snakebite prevention and first-aid with the funding of a few non-government organisations.
“We hope to reduce the number of lives lost to snakebite and sensitize people to co-exist with snakes, which is a necessity in India. We’re going to conduct lectures and workshops on snake conservation and snakebite mitigation,” Romulus Whitaker, known as ‘Snake Man of India,’ and founder of MCBT / CFH, told reporters here on Tuesday.
India was witnessing up to 50,000 deaths every year due to snakebite while thousands of victims survive with disability. Most of the victims seek local healer or quack treatment soon after snakebite.
“Instead, rush the victims to nearby hospital immediately to get proper medical assistance,” he said.
Snakes would never attack anyone as it would only defend itself when its existence was challenged or threatened, he said.
Around 150 students and nature lovers listened to him as he shared his experience with snakes, especially king cobra.
He will hold workshop at Mundanthurai for the personnel of Departments of Forest and Fire and Rescue Services to train them in outreach, public education and safe snake handling practices.
Born in 1943 in New York, Mr. Whitaker learnt about snakes from his ‘guru’ Bill Haast at the Miami Serpentarium.
He established the Madras Snake Park in 1972, Madras Crocodile Bank Trust and Centre for Herpetology in 1976, the Irula Snake Catchers Industrial Cooperative Society in 1980, the Andaman and Nicobar Environment Team in 1989 and the Agumbe Rainforest Research Station in 2005.
Now, he focuses on reducing the number of lives lost to snakebites by improving the anti-venom availability and by educating people on snakebite prevention and first-aid.
