India: Who let the crocs out? Crocodile captured from Chennai road

While driving in any Indian city, one might naturally be cautious about cattle or dogs making a sudden entry and crossing the path. What if a crocodile makes an entry? It did, not once, but twice in recent times. The first appearance was last week, as Chennai city and adjoining districts were being lashed by heavy rains brought in by the severe cyclone Michaung. Around that time, a video of a crocodile crossing a road, in the early hours went viral. On Wednesday, there’s been a daytime sighting of a crocodile and it caused quite the buzz! 

As per local residents, a crocodile was sighted at Alapakkam, New Perungalathur, Chennai. Pictures doing the rounds indicate that the crocodile was lying by the road, in the vegetation adjoining a compound wall. Within a few hours, the Police, local authorities and Forest Department personnel are said to have been alerted and they arrived at the spot. As word spread about the crocodile in the area, a crowd had gathered there. It was suspected that the crocodile belonged to one of the nearby water bodies.

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Videos show that the forest department personnel managed to capture the crocodile in a net. Later, it was taken away and released at a designated shelter in the city. It is being pointed out that the one seen on Wednesday is also a mugger crocodile(similar to the one seen amid the floods), one that is medium-sized and endemic to region between southern Iran and the Indian subcontinent. It is said to inhabit lakes, marshes and rivers, specifically slow-moving and shallow water bodies. 

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Commenting on the earlier video of the crocodile crossing a road in Chennai, Supriya Sahu, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary, Environment Climate Change & Forests, Government of Tamil Nadu, mentioned that there are few mugger crocodiles in several of the water bodies in Chennai. “These are shy and elusive animals and avoid human contact. This one has come out as the water has overflown due to massive rains under the impact of Cyclone Michaung. Please do not go close to water bodies. There is no possibility of harm to humans if these animals are left alone and unprovoked.” she had said in an X post. 

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