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Suresh in his lifetime has also received 3,000 odd bites. Recently, he sustained a snake bite while catching a cobra from Kurichi near Changanassery. He was rushed to a private hospital in Kottayam and later to Government Medical College Hospital (MCH). He is said to be out of danger but is in a critical condition.
Vava Suresh
Vava Suresh is an Indian wildlife conservationist and a snake expert. Suresh rescues snakes that stray into human habitats and releases them back into bushes or forests where they could live and flourish without being harmed by humans. He said he was born to ‘love and guard’ snakes without being driven by any monetary considerations.
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Braving poisonous bites, the ‘snake-man’ of Kerala has caught several snakes, most of them cobras, from various parts of the state and put them back into forests. Calls from various corners of the state, on sighting of snakes, keep his mobile phone busy throughout the day. Even local police and fire-force sometime use his expertise in trapping snakes without causing harm to the reptile or people.
Suresh says that snakes are gentle and lovable creatures which need kindness and protection from men.
“Snakes are part of my life ever since childhood.I, actually, do not know how I fell in love with them. As a child I had seen people brutally killing snakes. That instilled sympathy for the creature in my mind. At the same time, idols of serpents in temples made me feel that they have some divinity and should be protected,” Suresh said.
“I get around several calls a day seeking my services to catch snakes which people sight in their residential premises. Many of them get my phone number from police stations or from fire force units. Some local dailies also publish my mobile number for the people to contact me easily,” he said.
Suresh caught his first snake alive when he was 12. A conservationist’s passion and sympathetic approach towards snakes is what makes Suresh different from other catchers.
He never uses hooks or other sharp tools to trap the reptile as such implements will harm the delicate and slimy body. He never allows people to kill them after trapping. Suresh prefers to describe himself as a self-made snake catcher.
“I abandoned my schooling at 12. Since then, I have been living for the reptile. Sometimes I feel God has sent me to earth to protect them,” he said.
According to Suresh, the King cobra is the most dangerous and difficult snake to catch. “Trapping King cobra is very risky as it is highly venomous. It becomes all the more tenacious when it hatches eggs.”
He is always on the move in search of snakes on call from people who are in urgent need of his service. There were days when he attends 10 to 15 cases. Sometimes, the ‘rescue mission’ will continue for 20-22 hours at a stretch.
“It may be easy to trap a snake. But, to catch them without hurting them is more important for me,” he said. Suresh has suffered several snakebites.
Snakes are less dangerous than human beings as they will inject their venom only when harmed, he says in a lighter vein.
“Humans can tame any other animal or creature in the world, but never snakes. It is what I have learned from my three-decade-long experience. They sense with their forked and moving tongues. Whatever object they come across is taken as prey or food by them. That’s why they bite other creatures including humans. They are not doing it intentionally,” Suresh said.