Jharkhand: Python swallows a whole goat

Ranchi, Sep 18: A python, which spread fear at Karwai village in Jharkhand's Palamau Tiger Reserve, was captured after it swallowed a whole goat on Saturday.

"The snake reached near the house of one Maneswar Oraon in the village on Saturday and swallowed his goat. The villagers located the python, which was not able to flee after swallowing the goat. They informed me and I immediately sent a four-member rescue team led by forest guard Tara Kumar to the village," PTI quoted the in-charge of foresters at PTR Nirbhay Singh as saying.

The 8-foot python was released into a forest after being rescued with the help of the villagers. "The snake entered the village attracted by domestic animals, as it was getting easy food in the village," Singh said.

Maneswar Oraon said the goat was in a maize field adjacent to his house when the python attacked and swallowed it.

"Even though the snake used to come out at night, we were afraid because it could be dangerous for little children in the village," he said.

Forest guard Tara Kumar, who led the rescue operation, told PTI, "The python will be around eight-foot long. We were not scared of it, as it is non-poisonous. So, we rescued it with help of villagers and released it to a deep forest, so that it cannot return back."

The officials also claimed that the villagers were scared as their goats and hens were going missing every morning in the village of about 400 families in Garu (East) forest range of the reserve.