Mother used wooden bat to save daughter from crocodile attack

A woman displayed immense courage to rescue her 19-year-old daughter from the jaws of an adult crocodile in Thikariyamubarak village near Padra town in Gujarat, western India, on Friday.



At around 9.30am, Kanta Vankar was washing clothes on the banks of the Vishwamitri river when the crocodile grabbed her leg and started pulling her into water. Her mother, Divali, who was standing nearby, heard her shrieks.

Divali grabbed her daughter's hand, picked up a washing bat and started hitting the crocodile. After about 10 minutes, the crocodile gave up and let go of Kanta's leg, forest officials said. Kanta, who suffered injuries on her leg, was taken to hospital for treatment. She was said to be in a stable condition.



"The mother saved her daughter by attacking the crocodile," said range forest officer Ashok Pandya. "We've asked the locals to stay away from the river but many still wash clothes in the river water." A census done by the forest department in January had revealed that the Vishwamitri is home to 260 crocodiles.