SARRP, an NGO, acted on a tip-off and has offered to help the fire dept in future rescue operations
Members of a non-governmental organisation involved in animal rescuing were in shock on finding that the Mira Bhayander Fire Brigade staff had kept several snakes huddled together in a cage, after saving them from different localities. The fire brigade officials have now requested the NGO to not only help them in future rescues but also, in carrying out workshops on the management of snakes.
On receiving a tip-off, a team of four including Santosh Shinde, Chaitanya Keer, Vaishali Chawhan and Saket Taduri from Spreading Awareness on Reptiles and Rehabilitation Programme (SARRP) reached the fire station at Mira Road, on December 9.
"There were two cages. While one of them had a lone Cobra, another cage had three Russell's Viper, one juvenile Cobra, that are venomous snakes along with one Checkered Keelback, that is not venomous. There was also a plastic gunny bag that had a six-feet Python kept in it. We told them that snakes can go into trauma and can get injured if not released quickly after rescue," Keer said. He further added that on speaking to the fire brigade officials they found out that the staff had no idea about identifying snakes and hence, while rescuing, they used safety gears thinking all snakes were venomous.
The officials also informed the NGO members of their difficulties in releasing the snakes after their rescue. The forest officials would not allow the snakes to be released in the Sanjay Gandhi National Park and they cannot release snakes close to human habitation.
"The fire brigade officials told us of their problems and we explained the snake rescue protocol to them. We also gave them our phone numbers and told them that we would help during rescue calls," Shinde said.
Shinde also spoke about their plans to organise a special workshop for the fire brigade officials. The workshop will aim at making them aware about safe techniques of snake rescue, identification as well as, on ways to release them along with the help of the forest department.
Meanwhile, all the snakes with the fire brigade have been taken into Thane territorial division's custody and sent to Thane SPCA for medical examination. They will be later released into their natural habitat.
A senior official from the Mira-Bhayander fire brigade said that it might be easy to point fingers at their staff but, one must understand that people, after spotting snakes, call the fire brigade as the forest department and even snake rescuers don't respond. "Although we don't have enough knowledge, we rescue snakes and do not allow any one to kill them. We have no support from forest officials," he said.
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