The death of a 57-year-old woman, attacked and killed by a blood-thirsty crocodile in the Neyyar Dam reservoir near here, has raised a number of questions on how far conservation efforts should be taken.

Ironically, the incident comes just after tears were shed for the crocodiles of the Parassinikadavu Snake Park in Malabar after several of them died while authorities handled them badly during an effort to close down the park run by a society headed by former Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader M.V. Raghavan. On that occasion, the public outcry was vehemently for the crocodiles.

Crocodiles arrived in the Neyyar Dam area due to a Central Government-sponsored scheme to protect crocodiles, that commenced in 1977. Accordingly, a crocodile farm was set up in the area, in a bid to protect the species. But over the years, the conservation efforts have turned out to be a problem of plenty, with the crocodiles breeding plentifully in captivity.

In the early eighties, some of them were released into the reservoir of the Neyyar Dam, where they have multiplied even faster. Some of the crocodiles which have turned violent are now frequently attacking people in the area.

The victim of the latest crocodile attack, Rajamma, had been washing clothes when the crocodile crept up and grabbed her by the neck, mauled her and dragged her into the depths of the reservoir.

The crocodile refused to part with the body for over four hours, and only after police managed to shoot it in the mouth after getting due clearance from the forest authorities did the crocodile drop the dead body.

The violent crocodiles in the reservoir have attacked over a dozen people in the vicinity in recent years, maiming some of them and injuring others, and the locals are calling for ridding the reservoir of these deadly creatures.

Interestingly, no one has a clue to the exact number of crocodiles in the reservoir, and a study is being conducted to assess the crocodile population in the waters. Meanwhile, the captive crocodiles in the adjacent crocodile farm are also growing in numbers, leaving authorities the unenviable task of finding housing space for their ever-swelling numbers.