Tikapur : Tikapur Municipality in Kailali has launched a training aimed at raising awareness among locals about the characteristics of snakes, their roles in ecology along with preventive and curative measures.

The training, which includes municipal police, Barghars (community leaders from the Tharu community), community development organization officials, teachers, students, and youth, focuses on identifying venomous and non-venomous snakes, preventing snakebites, providing treatment practices, and rescuing snakes.

Earlier, Tikapur Municipality had allocated a budget for disaster management for the current fiscal year, and this awareness programme falls under that allocation.

With the onset of summer, the risk of snakebites increases, it is reported. Around one hundred community development organizations have been included in the training.

“The risk of snakebites is high in the district, and people tend to kill snakes out of fear of potential bites,” said ward chair Mohan Luhar BK. “If a snake is identified on time, treatment becomes easier even in the case of a bite. The training aims to make the public aware of the ecological importance of snakes as well,” he added.

Situated in the Terai plains, Tikapur Municipality is particularly vulnerable to snakebites. Youths are also being trained in snake rescue. Currently, the area has only one rescuer, who finds it challenging to cover distant locations and handle all rescues alone.

Tikapur Hospital provides treatment for snakebites. According to Padam Raj Bhatta, Medical Recorder Information Officer at the hospital, 47 snakebite cases have been recorded so far in the current fiscal year.
According to Nirmala Chaudhary, Chief of the Forest, Environment, and Disaster Management Section of the municipality, rescue training is planned for 20 individuals, who will then be mobilized in each ward based on accessibility, with guaranteed insurance coverage.