Kerala’s vegetarian crocodile passes away at Kasaragod temple

A born carnivore, this crocodile who didn’t eat meat is indeed a novelty and that is exactly what Babiya was. This 75-year-old male crocodile belonging to Majesharam taluk’s Sri Ananthapadmanabha Swamy Temple in Kasaragod district, Kerala, died on Sunday night.

A sight for the devotees, Babiya lived in the temple lake and ate only the rice and jaggery offerings at the temple, was fondly called the “Vegetarian Crocodile” as it did not kill any being for its diet, surviving on prasadam. He showered his blessings on the faithful visiting the temple after eating their offerings after the pujas.

According to The Hindu, in 1945, a British soldier shot a crocodile dead in the temple and after a few days Babiya appeared in the pond.

The reptile was not well for the last few days and was taken for a check-up by veterinary doctors in Mangaluru’s Pilikula Biological Park. Sharing details with Manorama, Udayakumar R. Gatty, Temple Trustee said: “In the past two days, Babiya did not come up for food. We launched a search but could not find it. Sunday night, we saw it dead in the lake.”

As a befitting tribute to the crocodile his body will be buried in the temple ground. At present it is kept in a mobile freezer to enable devotees to pay their tributes.

The crocodile had access to all the places in the Temple and could be found either in the lake or basking on the stairs. In the summers, he would find refuge in the Vana Shastara, a laterite pond for cattle in the temple compound.