THATTA, Sept 12: Villagers residing around a rainwater pond in Chattochand, along the National Highway in Thatta district, shot and killed a crocodile on Thursday that had made its way here after escaping from the Haleji lake, a Ramsar wetland.

After it was killed, carcass of the crocodile was put on display at the Chillya bus stop where residents of surrounding villages kept stopping by to have a look at it. Till the evening, no wildlife official had so far come to collect any facts regarding the incident.

The croc had been spotted by a few youngsters who went to fetch water from the pond. They claimed to have seen the reptile grabbing a goat after which the villagers came armed with a gun and killed it.

The villagers feared that the lost and hungry reptile would hurt people living in the area. A few years ago, they narrated, an 11-year-old girl Ayesha had been killed by a lost crocodile while at least seven villagers have also been injured in similar incidents during the past couple of years. The reptiles also devoured a number of unguarded cattle including 16 goats, two cows and a buffalo, they added.

Lost crocodiles are occasionally spotted in various areas in Thatta, including the Keenjhar canal, Haleji channel, Hudero Dhandh, and the hilly terrain in Jhimpir. According to villagers including Jawed Bhambhro, Sadique Bhambhro, Sattar Mallah, Farooq Machi and Asghar Bhambhro, these crocs slip out from the Haleji lake via Jungshahi because they do not find enough prey there due to a low level of water and neglect by wildlife officials. They said that due to inadequate protection around the lake the reptiles managed to escape the wetland and wander to nearby areas.

They said that a few years ago, one crocodile after breaking through the KDA nets had even made its way towards Port Qasim reservoirs. But it was spotted and steered back towards Haleji lake, which is a freshwater lake covering an area of about 1,700 hectors with a depth of 250 metres.

The residents feared that a few crocs might have also made their way towards Keenjhar lake via the Right Bank Outfall Drain, posing a grave threat to the lives of hundreds of picnickers from Karachi.

Meanwhile, the local fishermen said that a number of fish species including Therees, Morakhi, Jarko and Kureri were disappearing from ponds in Thatta.

A game inspector of the Sindh wildlife department, said that the Haleji lake had housed around 200 crocodiles for more than two decades. He said that a few reptiles had even been grown and isolated in nearby hatcheries and were fed by wildlife officials.

He said that former Sindh chief minister Mumtaz Ali Bhutto had gifted seven crocs to the Haleji lake. Their number had since then increased significantly, he said.

Meanwhile, wildlife activists have called for maintenance of maximum water level in the Haleji lake and an adequate living environment for the reptiles.