Thenjipalam: Two weeks after a python was discovered with a clutch of eggs on the Calicut University Engineering College campus, 23 snakelings have been successfully hatched.

The eggs were cared for by Periyanippuram Veettil Shihabuddin, a certified snake catcher from Koyappadom near Chelari. The python and its eggs were discovered by workers clearing shrubs near the college’s perimeter wall. Shihabuddin was called to the scene and he safely captured the python and transferred the eggs to a special container at his home.

While the python was handed over to the Forest Department, officials agreed to Shihabuddin’s suggestion to allow him to incubate the eggs before returning the hatchlings. Using a temperature-controlled thermocol box, he created the right environment for the eggs to hatch. Out of 30 eggs, 23 hatched successfully. The baby snakes will soon be handed over to the Forest Department.

It has only been five years since he received certification from the Forest Department as an approved snake catcher but in that time, he has already rescued and handed over more than 300 snakes.