'Not snake bite, some other non-venomous insect'; Railway dismisses reports of Nilambur snake bite incident

PALAKKAD: The railway by Tuesday evening dismissed the snake bite incident in the Nilambur-Shornur passenger train reported earlier today. An Ayurveda doctor was rushed to hospital after she feared being bitten by a snake inside the general compartment. Even the bite marks on the legs resembled a snake bite which added to the worries. After a detailed investigation, the railway dismissed reports of snake bites, saying that the young woman may have been bitten by some other insects, mostly non-venomous.

Ayurveda doctor Gayathri who was travelling to Shornur on Tuesday morning in the general compartment, suddenly deboarded when the train reached Vallapuzha. She then reached out to the people crowded in the station and asked them to immediately take her to the hospital. According to reports, bite marks were visible in her legs. Taking note of the concern, the railway police foraged the bogie when the train reached Shornur, but found nothing suspicious.

Another passenger who came out from the same bogie complained of seeing a snake and said all other passengers were standing on seats in fear of the reptile.

A similar incident took place on April 15 inside the Guruvayur-Madurai express train. When the train reached Ettumanoor, Madurai native Karthik felt something bite him and saw a snake wriggling through the compartment. He was then admitted to Kottayam Medical College Hospital where he confessed to the doctor about seeing a snake inside the train.