Mangaluru: What’s that hissing sound- quite scary but true! Maurice Fernandes and his family residing at Gurupura-Kaikamba, in the outskirts of Mangaluru had a surprise guest, a 13 ft long King Cobra hiding in their shoe-rack. For Maurice this was something very strange, since Cobras rarely appear in such localities. Assuming that the Cobra must have strayed from the natural habitat to the coastal region and since it was something very rare, Maurice immediately called the expert snake catchers.
Picture of King Cobra Picture used for Illustration only
So to do the snake-catching job, “Snake” Gangesh Bolar and his disciple Suvith, known as “Snake” Papu were immediately called to the scene . It is learnt that Gangesh has been dealing with reptiles for over four decades and has passed on the skill to 31 year-old Suvith aka Papu. Without no time, Gangesh and Papu were able to coax the king cobra out of the shoe rack and bagged it. According to Papu Mr. Papu this is the second time that a king cobra was sighted and caught in Gurupura-Kaikamba area, and the duo are overwhelmed and proud that for the first time they had caught a King Cobra.
‘Snake’ Gangesh and ‘Snake’ Papu catching a king cobra that had strayed into a residence in Gurupura Kaikamba, near Mangaluru, on Saturday.—PHOTO: BY Special Arrangement
Seen in the picture (L-R) ‘Snake’ Gangesh and ‘Snake’ Papu catching a King Cobra
It is also learnt that Papu has caught over 2,250 snakes in a decade, while his teacher Gangesh aged 63, a fisherman had learned the art of catching snakes from his grandfather Angara Pandit Bolar, who used to provide home medicine for snake bites. The duo also rescue and treat injured snakes and release them to the wild through the Biological Park authorities, and they also take care of abandoned snake eggs, hatch and release these young ones in to the wild.
The Male King cobra which has been handed over to the Pilikula Biological Park at Vamanjoor-Moodushedde., presently has not been kept for public viewing, since certain decision has to be taken by the Park authorities.
