Panic over the Russell's viper has spread in Feni, stoked on Facebook. But the story has turned out to be a rumour: an incident from another district was passed off as having happened in Feni.

Inquiries found that from this morning several Facebook accounts and pages had spread a rumour that a Russell's viper found in Shariatpur district had been found in Sonapur village of Pathannagar union in Feni's Chhagalnaiya upazila. This caused panic in the area and across Feni. But local public representatives said the report of a Russell's viper in Sonapur village was not correct. Locals said it was a rumour and that an incident from elsewhere had been passed off as Feni's.

Asked about it, Pathannagar union parishad chairman Rafiqul Haider Jewel said: "The report of a Russell's viper in Sonapur village is not correct. I spoke to the local member and other people and learned that it is a rumour. An incident from elsewhere has been passed off as Feni's."

Babul Bhowmik, range officer of the Feni Social Forestry Division, said the report of a Russell's viper in Chhagalnaiya was not correct and had essentially spread as a rumour on social media.

He said the snake is a harmless creature that strikes only to save itself when its life is at risk. The forest officer urged people not to panic but to stay careful.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.