Vava Suresh, who earned the moniker ‘The Snake-man of Kerala’ for risking his own life to catch snakes straying into human-inhabited areas and releasing them into the wild, was bitten by a cobra during one of his recent missions here on Monday.
The 48-year-old was initially rushed to a private hospital in the city.
He had lost consciousness 10 minutes before reaching the hospital and his pulse had dropped to the 20s.
His condition remains critical, hospital authorities inform.
He has since been moved to Kottayam medical college hospital.
Health Minister Veena George said the State will cover Vava Suresh’s medical expenses.
Minister VN Vasavan too had paid Suresh a visit at the hospital.
Cobras are highly venomous snakes.
This is not the first time Suresh is bitten by a snake.
During his long career of conservation activities, he has encountered numerous accidents.
He has been on ventilator twice and in ICU four times.
In all, he has survived more than 300 venomous snake bites.
His last incident was on 13 February 2020.
Vava Suresh’s efforts to capture venomous snakes and to educate the people about snakes and their behaviour is widely acknowledged.
