The locals residing in the fringes of the Bhitarkanika National Park are now in a state of panic as three pythons were retrieved within a week in the coastal villages.
The Forest personnel on last Thursday rescued an eight feet long python that entered into the house of Sk Rafique of Kanaknagar whereas another 8.5 feet long python was rescued from the cattle shed of one Sashi Behera at Bankuala village.
Similarly, Kanika forest personnel on last Tuesday retrieved an 18.2-feet long female Indian rock python from a straw heap of Sambhunath Giri at Paramanandapur village under Iswarpur panchayat and also rescued 55 python eggs from there.
The repeated straying of the giant reptiles into human settlements has been the main cause of panic. There are apprehensions that deadly pythons could be found anywhere and the locals might fall victim to them.
A resident of Righagada village Nirmala Moharana on April 17 underwent a harrowing ordeal with a ten-foot-long Indian male python sneaking into his house. Villagers were panicky though the snake lied motionless in a corner of the house and caused harm to none.
According to official sources, as many as nine pythons were rescued in last two months by the forest personnel of Kanika Range. All the rescued pythons were above 8 feet long. These reptiles were rescued from the villages of Ragadapatia, lalitapatia, Khola, Krushnanagar, Kanaknagar, Bankuala, Paramanandapur and Talachua.
While the forest personnel were rescuing the 18.2 feet long female Indian rock python, one of them fell unconscious for a moment when the reptile started hissing and made an attempt to attack him, stated Ranger Akhaya Kumar Nayak.
In a couple of occasions, while rescuing the pythons, they were found to be feasting on livestock and making an effort to attack the rescuers. So there is every possibility that the giant reptiles could eat small children and infants.
The locals demanded adequate steps for restricting the pythons from the human habitations. According to Ranger Nayak, the Bhitarkanika National Park is a natural habitat of Indian rock pythons. The reptile’s population is no less than 4,000.
That is the reason why they are straying into nearby villages in increasing numbers. He, however, assured to intimate his higher ups for suitable action in the matter.