A Burmese Python Lairen was rescued from Singtom in Churachandpur district by a group of mushroom foragers from Tangjeng of Kakching district early Tuesday.
The People for Animals (PFA) Manipur stated in a release that a mushroom forager Th Jiten spotted the python on the forest ground unable to move as it seemed to have just eaten a big animal.
Fearing that the python will be an easy target for poachers, the mushroom foragers took the python in a bag and brought it to Tangjeng, it added.
The locals had called shamans and performed rituals on the python according to their beliefs, it mentioned.
It stated that after coming across the incident on a social media post, the rescue team consisting of a team of People for Animal (PFA) along with the staff of Manipur and Thoubal Forest Division led by Kakching RO L Dinesh under the supervision of DFO Thoubal Th Loken rescued the animal.
The team witnessed people from different regions praying to the python by giving offerings, it stated.
It stated that after the X-Ray was performed, the animal inside the python’s belly was identified as a Barking Deer (Shaji). Along with the deer inside its belly the python weighed more than 40 kg and was around 11 feet, it mentioned.
The python was handed over to the Zoological garden at Iroisemba to treat its injuries and later release in its habitat after it had digested the animal inside its belly, it added.