Photos: Conservationist Vava Suresh tackles flood-hit Kerala’s snake menace

After water started receding from flood-hit Kerala several cases of snakes being found inside houses began emerging. Vava Suresh, a living encyclopedia on snakes was among those brought in to help with the situation. In Kerala, he is widely known for rescuing snakes from human habitats. Over the years he has believed to have captured and rescued 140 king cobras and more than 50,000 straying snakes. Ever since the floods began he has attended over 50 snake related cases in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha and Ernakulam districts.

Updated on: Aug 30, 2018 11:28 AM IST

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Hospitals have readied anti-venom and flood victims returning home in Kerala have been told to stay alert as receding waters leave behind a glut of snakes. After several cases of snakes being found inside houses, Vava Suresh, a well-known snake handler, has been brought in. (Raj K Raj / HT Photo)

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Suresh, popularly known as Vava Suresh is a wildlife conservationist and a snake expert. He is widely known for rescuing snakes from human habitat in Kerala. After the floods the number of calls have also increased, “I got some 22 calls but most of them were not poisonous snakes. Caught some five cobras in different parts of Ernakulam on August 22, 2018,” Suresh said. (Raj K Raj / HT Photo)

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He has attended over 50 cases ever since the floods started in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha and Ernakulam districts. A number of calls he gets are out of panic, “People are scared even at the sight of a hammer-head worm. They think that’s a poisonous snake and call me in panic,” he said adding, “They are so harmless.” (Raj K Raj / HT Photo)

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Over the years Suresh has captured more than 140 king cobras --the most venomous snake on earth-- and is believed to have captured and rescued more than 50,000 straying snakes. Forest officials and veterinarians often seek his advice. He also takes regular classes for security officials engaged in jungle warfare. (Raj K Raj / HT Photo)

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Though Suresh has suffered hundreds of bites, he has been hospitalised only six times, and been put on the ventilator twice. Doctors have warned that his liver has developed serious problems but Suresh is unmoved despite losing an index finger to a cobra bite in 2005 and the movement of his right wrist after another attack. He continues to devote himself to his reptilian friends. (Raj K Raj / HT Photo)

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On an average, he gets about 25 calls every day and travels 200km to attend to snake-related issues. Due to the increasing number of calls, he now concentrates on venomous ones. “If the snake is poisonous, people kill it fast. The snake is the most misunderstood creature in the world. It plays a key role in eliminating rats and in balancing our ecology. It is the farmer’s best friend,” he adds. (Raj K Raj / HT Photo)

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An expert in snake matters, Suresh says this is the breeding season for common water snake. He has also performed more than 200 operations on snakes, curing the injured ones before releasing them in the wild. His thatched two-room house in the heart of Thiruvananthapuram city is full of ailing snakes. (Raj K Raj / HT Photo)