Mumbai: Snake rides pillion, biker alerted by another rider in Virar

MUMBAI: An unidentified bike rider in Virar (east) had an unwelcome pillion rider by way of a snake when he was on his way to work on Monday morning.
As the rider reached R J Naka in Virar (east), another two-wheeler rider behind him, cautioned him about a snake slithering underneath the rear seat of his Royal Enfield motorbike.


The rider kept his calm, moved his two-wheeler alongside the road, alighted and picked up a twig lying around. Even as a crowd gathered around him, instructing how to pull out the snake, the rider pushed the twig into the rear seat. The snake moved out and slithered into the nearby bushes.
The rider’s identity could not be known. Wildlife lover and snake rescuer Chitra Pednekar looked up the video and confirmed it as a common cat snake (scientific name Boiga trigonata). It is a semi-venomous snake and a good climber. It is mostly found on trees.
With rains lashing the Vasai-Virar region since Saturday, the reptile may have found comfort underneath the seat of the motorbike. He said that the snake could have harmed the rider, it is commendable that the rider kept his cool and did not loose balance on his two-wheeler.