Unequal fight: in India, a one-year-old child was mauled to death by a 70-centimeter cobra

An unusual incident has taken place in a village in the state of Bihar in eastern India, causing amazement among doctors and local residents: a two-year-old boy bit off the head of a poisonous cobra that had wrapped itself around his arm, The Telegraph reported on Monday.

The incident took place in West Champaran district, near Betiah town. According to relatives, little Govinda Kumar was playing near his home when he spotted a snake measuring about 70 centimeters in length. The reptile suddenly wrapped itself around the child's hand. However, instead of being scared, the boy instinctively grabbed the snake and bit into its head , killing it on the spot.

"I was standing nearby, shifting firewood, when the snake suddenly crawled out. Govinda grabbed it and clamped his jaws on its head. We freed his hands with difficulty and carefully removed the dead cobra from his mouth," the boy's grandmother said.

After the incident, the child lost consciousness. He was urgently taken to a local medical center, after which he was transferred to the central hospital of the city of Betiah.

Paediatrician Saurabh Kumar , who attended the child, said the patient was conscious and stable but with severe swelling of the face and mouth due to exposure to the poison.

"According to relatives, the cobra did not bite the boy. On the contrary, he became an aggressor – he swallowed part of the snake's head. Therefore, the poison did not get into the bloodstream, as usual, but into the gastrointestinal tract," the doctor explained.

Such a case, according to the specialist, is extremely rare and requires a cautious medical approach. The child was prescribed antihistamines and supportive therapy. He was under observation for 48 hours , and since no additional symptoms of poisoning arose, he was discharged home .

Such incidents, according to doctors, are almost never encountered in medical practice. However, the case became widely discussed in the Indian media and social networks, causing many comments about the child's reaction and his instinctive protection.