The Social Street India creates The Snake Guard to help reduce snake bites amongst farmers
Of the 1.14 Lakh cases of snake bites last year in India, 19,012 cases were from rural Maharashtra and 7,619 cases from Karnataka primarily amongst farmers. Due to which, farmers started killing snakes in large numbers. Prasadam, an NGO who works for farmers welfare, wanted to find a way to protect the farmers without endangering the lives of snakes. The Social Street India came up with an easy to use and affordable solution – an ultrasonic solar powered snake repellent which looked and worked exactly like the walking stick used by the farmers. All the farmers had to do was place it in the ground and it would send out a burst of sonic waves every 40 seconds, keeping snakes away. The device worked for up to 50 meters from the farmers, ensuring their safety.
As per a survey conducted two months after distributing the snake guards, the number of snake bite incidents substantially reduced. The Social Street are currently in the process of taking this initiative to other parts of the country and working closely with the government to educate farmers about the use of The Snake Guard.