KOLKATA: An India forestry ranger found himself in a bind after a python briefly strangled him while he posed for pictures with the giant snake. Wildlife officer Sanjay Dutta was called in Sunday by frantic villagers in West Bengal after they saw the 40-kilogramme (88-pound) python swallowing a goat alive.
Instead of placing it safely inside a bag, the ranger wrapped it around his neck and posed for pictures with stunned villagers. But panic spread as the huge snake wound itself around Dutta's neck, forcing him to struggle to free himself from its vice-like grip. He escaped unscathed, but a little red-faced.