Snake triggers scare in Srinagar school

The Government Girls’ High School located in Pandrethan area of Srinagar was the scene of hectic activity not because of students but thanks to a snake which had got stuck in the outer wall of the institution.

The incident happened on Friday when the students and staff of the school spotted a snake struggling in the boundary wall. Seeing its pitiable state, a local resident contacted Wildlife SOS’s emergency rescue helpline for assistance.

Quickly reaching the spot the NGO’s Rapid Response Unit identified the reptile as a Himalayan Trinket, a non-venomous snake. The 4-foot-long reptile was stuck inside a crevice of the wall, with its tail partly visible.

On careful examination, the team decided to break a portion of the wall to carry out the rescue. It took an hour for the team to finally extricate the snake. While the reptile did not sustain any injuries it has been kept under medical observation and will be released back into the wild once deemed fit.

Sharing the details of the rescue operation, Aaliya Mir, Programme Head of Jammu and Kashmir, Wildlife SOS said: “It was a challenging rescue since the wall had a lot of crevices, which made it difficult to navigate our gear and get hold of the snake. Not being able to see inside the crevice made it a little more difficult, but we were finally able to rescue the distressed animal. Besides, we didn’t want the school staff and students to panic which is why we asked the rescue callers to keep a watch on the animal so that it doesn’t make its way inside the school premises.”

It was a hectic week for the team as it had to rescue two more Himalayan trinket snakes. First was from a neighbourhood in Buchwara, measuring over six feet in length and the other from the garden of a residence in the Nishat area.

In all, the Rapid Response Unit rescued five Himalayan Trinket snakes in the month of October.