According to forest officials, crocodiles inhabit 60-70 km of the river stretch passing through around 15 villages, including Bhilwadi, Malwadi, Digraj, Audumbarwadi, Chopadewadi and Brahmnal
A general view of a flooded square at Sangli district of Maharashtra. Pic/AFP
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Deputy Conservator of Forest (Sangli) Vijay Mane said the forest department has now set up six centres near some flood-hit areas of Sangli city, Kavthe Mahakal, Palus, Kadegaon, Walwa and part of Tasgaon for rescuing crocodiles from these places. At these rescue centres, teams comprising forest officials, guards and members from NGOs working for wildlife conservation will respond to calls of the presence of crocodiles, snakes, injured birds and other wild animals in human habitats, he said.
"We have circulated a toll-free helpline number (1926) and personal numbers of forest officials and NGO members. If someone calls to inform about the presence of crocodile or any other wild animal, the team from the nearest centre will go there, rescue the animal and initiate a process to release it into its natural habitat," the official said. The objective of these rescue centres is to prevent any harm to the wild animals and minimise incidents of human-animal conflict, he added. Tabreg Khan, a member of the NGO Nature Conservation Society in Sangli, claimed the natural habitat of crocodiles along the Krishna river has been destroyed due to indiscriminate sand excavation activities.
"Now, during floods, the animals easily get swept away towards villages," he rued, and appealed to people not to harm crocodiles and inform the forest department and NGOs if they spot the reptile in their area. Amol Jadhav, another member of the NGO, asked people not to panic. He also said several videos of crocodiles venturing into villages were doing the rounds, but most of them were either of the 2019 floods in Sangli or other parts of the country.
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