Video - Floods And Now Crocodiles: Kota Residents' Rain Double Whammy

For residents in parts of Rajasthan's Kota and villages around it, the recent spell of heavy rain has brought a double whammy. Not only have their homes and the areas around them been flooded, but they are also now facing a very scary threat - crocodiles.

A video recorded by a resident of Anjali Nagar colony in Kota's Deoli Arab shows a crocodile walking across a road at night and settling in a vacant plot filled with rainwater. People living next to the plot say they are worried it may still be there. 

The situation is similar in nearly half a dozen colonies in the Deoli Arab area, close to the banks of the Chandraloi river, where people say they are too scared to step out of their homes because they may come across crocodiles, especially at night 

The Chandraloi river, which merges with the Chambal, is home to many crocodiles and some venture out into human habitats during the rainy season every year. The heavy rain this year, however, has meant that the Chambal river is in spate. With nowhere to go, the excess water has led to the Chandraloi overflowing its banks, and crocodiles are entering urban areas and villages in large numbers. 

"We can't step out of our homes, our children cannot go to school. We have no idea when we will come across a crocodile. Many plots are vacant here and filled with rainwater. Some crocodiles are hiding in these empty plots," said a resident of Anjali Colony.

"Teams came and rescued people during the floods, but crocodiles are also a big problem. They are 12 to 14 feet long and can attack," said another. 

The problems are similar in rural areas. More than a dozen villages on the banks of the Chandraloi have to deal with crocodiles close to their homes - in farms, fields and nullahs.

In the Arjunpura and Manas villages, farmers say they are too scared to go into their fields because crocodiles may be lurking in the floodwaters 

In Ramkhedi village, Kalibai recounts how a crocodile attacked her in July. She still has scars on her hand and says she survived because the crocodile was not a full-grown adult but a young reptile. 

Farmers Hari Shankar and Ram Kishan told NDTV they always have to be alert. 

"Our fields are next to each other, but we always go in groups because you have no idea when a crocodile may be lurking in the water," said Hari Kishan.

"We have planted rice here but we don't go to our fields at night and children from the village are not allowed to go there at all as these crocodiles are known to attack human beings," he added.