Bhubaneswar: He lost his right palm in an unfortunate incident. But that has not wavered his spirit. He continues his passion to protect snakes, even highly venomous ones, with only left hand. Meet Rama Chandra Mohapatra, popularly known as ‘Ram Bhaina’, from Balapur village of Sakhigopal area of Odisha’s Puri district.
Ram Bhaina has been fond of snakes since his early teens. People in his locality used to call him for help whenever any snake trespassed their premises. A gifted snake handler, he took up the dangerous profession of snake rescue as he grew up. He was not paid adequately by the people or the Forest department for all the risk he took in the profession. He was not bothered about it and carried on his job out of a sheer passion for snakes.
In an unfortunate incident in 2014, Ram Bhaina’s right hand was severely damaged while bursting a fire-cracker. The doctors had to go for amputation of the palm from wrist.
While he was yet to come out of the trauma of the explosion and resulting loss of a hand, he remained the only snake rescuer in his area. Though people realised his condition, they had no option but to look up to him for help in case any slither intruded into their houses.
His passion and people’s requests compelled him to resume his job of rescuing deadly snakes. Now also, 56-year-old Ram Bhaina gets regular calls from distressed families of his area and happily obliges them.
But rescuing snakes with only left hand has become all the more dangerous for him. After locating the snake, he swiftly lifts its tail and takes it to an open area. Then he puts the snake into a plastic jar tactfully and closes it with the lid. He makes holes in the plastic jar for ventilation of the snake and later, releases it in natural habitat.
Ram Bhaina is also an avid environment lover. “I never throw plastic jars outside as those would be harmful for the environment,” he says.
Subhendu Mallik, general secretary, Snake Helpline has high regards for Ram Bhaina. “I founded Snake Helpline in 2007, but Ram Bhaina was my childhood hero. While I was in school, I often read his articles about rescuing snakes. At that time, I was not involved in any snake activity,” said Subhendu.
“We had our first occupational safety protocol in 2017 and its amendment in 2020. We made it clear that only physically fit people can be engaged in the dangerous job of snake rescue. Further, we banned the use of plastic bottles and made it mandatory to use cloth bags in rescue operation. However, Rama Bhaina is an exception,” said Subhendu.
“I have seen one-leg amputees undertake snake rescue in South Africa and India. However, Ram Bhaina may be the first and only person in the world who carries out the job of rescuing deadly snakes even with only left hand,” he added.
Snake Helpline felicitated Ram Bhaina in 2018 for his dedicated lifetime service towards rescuing snakes and helping people in distress. “I feel that he deserves much more than that. He is a befitting candidate for getting the state-level Biju Pattnaik Wildlife Conservation Award,” said Subhendu.
He has dedicated his life to the conservation of snakes without any aid from the government or any agency. Despite not getting enough honorarium/remuneration either from the public or the government to run his family, Ram Bhaina continues to do his service to the society and wildlife.
