Kendrapara (Odisha): In an act of exemplary courage a six-year-old girl Mamata Dalai in Kendrapara district of Odisha defied all odds and acted on her spontaneous impulsion when a crocodile caught hold of her elder sister, Asanti Dalai. Both sisters had gone to the pond in the backyard of their house to play.
As Ashanti was standing near the pond, a 5-feet long baby crocodile sprung out suddenly from the pond caught hold of her hand. Mamata, in a rare presence of mind and courage, caught hold of the other hand and dragged her. As the clutch of the reptile was not properly gripped, it let go of the girl and descended back to the waters.
Asanti sustained multiple wounds on her hands and is presently undergoing treatment in Rajnagar Community Health Centre. This incident occurred at Bankuala village under Dangamala gram panchayat in Rajnagar block on Tuesday afternoon.
The District Collector, Muralidhar Mallick, gave Rs 2000 to the victim for the treatment. “I would recommend her name for the Bravery Awards for her display of rare courage at such a young age,” he added.
The family members rushed to the spot and took the girl to the hospital. “I did not want to lose my sister. So I held her hand tightly and began to drag her with full force or else the crocodile would have dragged her inside the pond,” said the brave little girl.
On being informed by villagers, forest officials fished out the crocodile and left in the nearby river. As the village is located in the Bhitarkanika National Park area, crocodile attack in rivers and ponds are quite common in this area.
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