Families in Kolkata were rattled after a first-grade student was bitten by a snake in a school classroom on Aug. 24, 2026.
It was the second reported case in the city of a student being bitten on school grounds in less than a week, raising new concerns about campus safety.
Here's what to know
At Mitra Institution in Kolkata, the student was bitten in a classroom at about 8:30 a.m., according to The Hindu.
The child was taken to SSKM Medical College and Hospital for treatment.
After word of the bite spread, anxious parents gathered outside the school, and some brought their children home. Police and forest officials later came to the campus to inspect the grounds and look into the incident.
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, who also represents the area as Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA), said he personally checked on the student's condition; the school is in the area he represents.
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"I spoke to the doctors and saw the student on a video call. Doctors assured me that the child will be okay. This is not a small incident for me, I am also the MLA there, not just the CM," Adhikari said.
Raja Dey, the head teacher at Mitra Institution, said he had never encountered anything like it during his time at the school and that administrators had already started examining the situation and taking action.
More background
Another snakebite involving a student had been reported in Kolkata on Aug. 18.
A separate incident was reported on Aug. 18 at Heritage School on the EM Bypass, where a class 3 student was bitten in the school's washroom, according to The Hindu. The child was taken to a nearby private hospital and was released on Aug. 19 after doctors said the snake appeared to be nonvenomous.
Adhikari also alleged that the school had not received its composite grant for three years, funding he said is used for supplies such as carbolic acid and bleaching powder to maintain the premises and help deter snakes.
What's being done?
Following the Aug. 24 bite, police and forest department officials inspected the school.
Outside Mitra Institution, one mother said, "I took him out of the school immediately after he entered the school. We were so scared,"
Where can I learn more?
The two Kolkata school bites came amid a string of other incidents involving snakes turning up in homes, schools, and other indoor spaces in India and across South Asia. Those cases, along with broader warnings about snakebite risk, help explain why officials are approaching school inspections and prevention efforts with added urgency.
• In India, a snake in a washing machine bit two people before hospital panic followed.
• Across India, rising temperatures are worsening snakebite risks and deepening a public-health crisis.
• In Bihar, a toddler bit a cobra he mistook for a toy.
• Globally, venomous snakes are moving into new areas, raising future bite risks.
• In Dhaka, snakes frequently sneak into human settlements as urbanization reshapes their habitat.
The classroom scare in Kolkata did not happen in isolation; it fits into a broader run of human-snake encounters in crowded places.
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