Marsh crocodile washed away by floods rescued in Tiruvannamalai

Forest Department rescues mugger crocodile from Sathanur dam corridor, highlighting the need for preventive measures and quick response.

A mugger crocodile was rescued by the Forest Department after it strayed into the corridor of one of the water channels at Sathanur dam in Tiruvannamalai on Tuesday.

Based on an alert from Water Resources Department (WRD) officials around 6.30 a.m., a four-member team led by A. Vishwanathan, forest range officer, Crocodile Farm (Sathanur), went to the spot.

District Forest Officer Yogesh Kumar Darg was also informed.

“Unlike mud or water where it can move faster, the reptile found it difficult to crawl on the concrete floor of the dam area. It took nearly two hours for us to release it into the river (Thenpennai),” Mr. Vishwanathan told The Hindu.

Forest officials rejected the possibility of the crocodile escaping from the government crocodile farm within the dam area.

Set up in 1977, the crocodile farm – panning 4,832 sq.ft and bordered by a children’s park – has 395 marsh crocodiles (Crocodylus palustris) and a few fish grottos.

Forest officials said that the reptile would have been washed-up by the riverbank in recent floods. Due to heavy rain, nearly two lakh cusecs of excess water were released into the river recently. This had also resulted in the collapse of a ₹15.90 crore bridge inaugurated just three months ago.