Crocodile attack: Bengaluru techie booked for trespassing after losing his arm

A day after a Bengaluru techie lost his arm in a crocodile attack in a waterbody, the IIT Bombay alumnus on Monday underwent a surgery at Hosmat Hospital in the city. Startup entrepreneur Mudit Dandwate, a resident of Indiranagar, was shifted from the ICU to a private ward after the operation.

According to doctors, 26-year-old Mudit, who runs a healthcare startup, is yet to overcome the shock. Mudit and his friend alongwith two dogs had gone for trekking in the forests around Thattekere Lake.

When they came near the lake, the dogs ran towards the waterbody. Mudit too followed them and entered the waters as he did not notice a board warning about crocodiles. He was suddenly attacked by a crocodile who bit is left forearm. Mudit somehow managed to ward off the crocodile and was rushed to the hospital.

A case of trespassing under section 24 of the Karnataka Forest Act, 1963 has been booked against Mudit as the Thattekere Lake in Ramanagar district is located inside a protected forest.

The forest department now wants to get a statement from Mudit’s friend. Mudit cannot give statement as he is still undergoing treatment.

Forest officials said Mudit should have paid heed to the warnings, while some think he might have not been able to read the board as they were written in Kannada. However, some said that the board also had a pictorial depiction of the danger.

"He survived only because the crocodile grabbed his hand. Usually, crocodiles drown you and then grab you. Had it grabbed his hip, abdomen, chest or even thighs, chances of survival would have been bleak. Mudit is the first crocodile attack survivor I have seen in my career. He is still in trauma and will take time to recover," said Dr Thomas Chandy, director and chief of orthopedics, Hosmat Hospital.

“The government should control humans from entering such lakes," he said.