A six-foot long crocodile that was uninvitedly sleeping in the bathroom of a household in Gujarat’s Anand district sent them into a frenzy early on Sunday morning.
According to a report, the reptile entered a semi-pucca toilet in a home in the Kharkuva neighbourhood of Anand’s Sojitra town.
The crocodile was spotted circling around the Indian-style toilet seat with no intention of letting go, according to the story, thus family members of Udaysinh Bhikhabhai Rathod, the owner of the property, had to wait for their turns to finish the morning rituals.
Curios residents flocked to the area in huge numbers in order to get a sight of the crocodile, which was thought to have emerged from a nearby pond. The neighborhood’s Khodiyar Mata temple is not far from the semi-pucca house with loose bricks. Interestingly, this deity’s mode of transportation is a crocodile, according to the story.
The locals told the villagers that it was not the first time that crocodiles have waded freely into the vicinity of a human settlement while they reached out to obtain a sight. The crocodile that entered the temple last year was also saved and released back into its native environment.
“The Vandevad talav which is the backyard of our area does not have a protection wall. It is known for having a good population of crocodiles. So, at times, crocodiles sneak out from the pond and enter into our village,” Rathod told the news publication.
A team of forest department officials later reached the village from nearby Malataj village to rescue the crocodile. Malataj village too has a wetland that is known for its healthy crocodile population. The team kept a cage to capture the crocodile which was pulled inside with the help of rope and captured.
“After we were informed by the locals, we reached the spot to capture the crocodile. We have rescued the crocodile and after checking its condition, it will be released in its natural habitat as per the norms,” said a forest department official, quoted by the Times of India.
“Villages of Sojitra are known for being heaven for crocodiles. They have a healthy population of crocodiles. So, whenever we get such calls, we come to rescue the reptiles and they are later released in their natural habitats,” the official said.