At Baripada Hospital in Odisha's Mayurbhanj district, medical staff treated a woman who showed up with the same snake that had bitten her, according to the Deccan Chronicle.
Here's what to know
The woman, identified as Soumya Satpathy, tried to protect the snake by putting it in a plastic container after it became stuck in an area with people.
Satpathy was treated at Baripada Hospital and was reportedly in stable condition afterward.
She and her father went to remove the snake after it got stuck somewhere and couldn't get out on its own.
She was bitten on the hand while trying to steer the reptile into the container.
Bringing the snake to the hospital also allowed staff to identify it during treatment.
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More background
Satpathy got involved because she believed startled people who encountered the snake might kill it.
Human-wildlife encounters pose a risk to animals and people alike, as this situation shows.
As average temperatures rise, land development increases, and cities sprawl into what was once wild habitat, incidents like this are occurring far more frequently, the BBC warned.
What can be done?
The Deccan Chronicle noted that people should not try to catch or handle a snake by themselves.
The bite occurred during the closest-contact stage of the rescue — guiding the snake into a plastic container.
The episode underscores the need for trained snake rescue services and broader public awareness of reptile encounters.
In Satpathy's case, bringing the snake to Baripada Hospital made identification possible, but trained responders should handle capture and close contact when available.
Recounting the incident, Satpathy described her fear for the snake's safety.
"While I was holding it, the snake tilted its head slightly, and its tooth grazed my finger as I tried to put it inside the container. We had no other option because, if we had let it go, people might have beaten it to death," she admitted, per the Deccan Chronicle.
"The family members could have panicked and killed it out of fear."
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