Crocodiles make stormwater drains home, lurk beneath feet in Gujarat

VADODARA: When a four-foot-long crocodile lunged out of a drainage hole in Waghodia on Tuesday, locals were shocked as they never expected a reptile to crawl in their area, which is several kilometres away from the Vishwamitri river.
But the river intersecting the city and housing over 300 crocodiles is not the only home for these reptiles now.

In fact, crocodiles are crawling right beneath the feet of Barodians, inside the storm water drains and underground drainage lines which have become their latest homes
"There is a vast network of storm water drains in the city and crocodiles have found them an ideal way to migrate to different water bodies without being noticed. They travel several kilometres in these drains. Crocodiles are spotted in several areas of the city now inside the drainage lines network," said Neha Patel, animal activist, who rescues crocodiles in and around Vadodara.

Vadodara has a storm water drainage network spanning 410 km, connecting almost all areas. The drains connected to the Vishwamitri and many ponds carry rainwater to the rivers outside the city, which is spread over 223.33 sq km.
"We get at least 25 to 30 calls of crocodiles being spotted in storm water drains or drainage lines every monsoon. We rescue only those reptiles that pose danger to people. It's difficult to keep a tab on their movement as they keep travelling around," Patel told TOI.
Rescuers get the majority of calls for crocodiles in drains from Danteshwar that has storm water drains directly connected to the Jambua river outside the city. Many crocodiles swim from the river into the drainage network and surface in the residential areas of Tarsali and Danteshwar.
Some reptiles also travel through the drains and reach Vadodara Central Jail as well as Lalbaug pond. One of the active volunteers in the forest department said that during monsoon, many storm water drains and drainage lines are infested with crocodiles.
Crocodiles use drainage lines
Hemant Vadhwana, a crocodile rescuer, said, "The population of crocodiles in the Vishwamitri is going up and these reptiles are fiercely territorial. So, many younger crocodiles venture out of the river in search of a new abode. They use drainage lines as a passage to other water bodies." "Some drainage lines have water round the year. Crocodiles can feed on fishes and the non-vegetarian waste disposed of by people in the drains.
Watch Watch: Locals capture crocodile from a stormwater drain