Wildlife conservationists conduct drives for students to educate about snakes, alleviate fear
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: In an event at MGM school in Padegaon, wildlife conservationists carried out an awareness drive to address fears, curious questions and common misconceptions about snakes to students.
"Through an audio-visual presentation, students were introduced to the world of snakes in a scientific and engaging manner. Topics included differences between venomous and non-venomous snakes, behaviour patterns, reasons why snakes sometimes enter human habitats and the importance of snake conservation," said wildlife conservationist Ashish Joshi.
Rescue expert Manoj Gaikwad and Chidambar Kale shared real-life examples of snake encounters.
The session saw students getting hands-on demonstrations and visual references to help identify various snake species and understand their ecological roles.
These drives are conducted in other schools too especially during the rainy season—the motto, replacing fear with knowledge.
In another drive, honorary wildlife warden for Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Dr Kishor Pathak said, "Maharashtra has only four species of venomous snakes, namely Russell's viper, common krait, Indian cobra and Indian saw-scaled viper."
"Besides these 'Big Four', we have several species of non-venomous snakes around us that are vital for ecological balance. People often kill snakes of fear, which causes irrevocable damage to nature. They must call rescuers or the forest department for help," he said.
Indian rock python, rat snake, kukri, wolf snake, common sand boa, checkered keelback and common trinket snake are among the non-venomous snakes found in the state. "In case of a snake bite, citizens must rush to the nearest hospital. Free anti-venom doses are available at govt hospitals if the bite is from a venomous snake," Pathak said. |
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