Viral video: Eagle snatches student's hall ticket in Kerala, drops it just in time for exam

In a strange and unexpected incident at a school in Kasaragod, Kerala, an eagle reportedly swooped down and snatched the hall ticket of a candidate moments before a departmental examination was set to begin.

According to media reports, the incident unfolded just minutes before the bell on Thursday, leaving both candidates and onlookers stunned.

The examination was set to begin at 7:30am, and by 7am, government employees—mostly lower division clerks aiming for a departmental promotion—had started arriving at the Government Upper Primary School in Kasaragod. Around 7:05am, classrooms were opened for the nearly 300 candidates to settle in and revise.

One of the candidates had placed his hall ticket beside him while preparing for the exam when, in a bizarre turn of events, an eagle suddenly swooped down, snatched the document in its beak, and flew up to a high window ledge overlooking the hall. Onlookers watched in disbelief as the bird perched calmly, hall ticket still in its grasp, seemingly unfazed by the growing commotion below.

Despite suggestions from others to scare the bird away, the candidate chose not to take any action that might cause it to fly off permanently with the document. After several tense minutes—and just as the final bell approached—the eagle dropped the hall ticket, allowing the relieved candidate to retrieve it and rush into the examination hall in time.

The scene, captured on video and widely shared on social media, quickly went viral, drawing amused reactions and disbelief from across the state.

Officials confirmed that no candidate would be allowed to appear for the exam without a hall ticket under any circumstances. While the identity of the affected candidate remains unknown—he reportedly avoided speaking to the media—authorities ensured he was allowed to take the exam as planned and did not face any further difficulties.