A young man named Shamim Hossain (28) has died of a snakebite in Gangni, Meherpur. He was bitten while asleep in his own room late on Tuesday night (5 November).

Local sources said Shamim Hossain, son of Haran Ali of Karamdi Mathpara village in the upazila, was asleep when a venomous snake suddenly bit him on a finger at around 2am. He woke and told his family, and was quickly taken to a local ojha, a traditional healer, where he was given incantations and "blessed water" to drink. When his condition worsened, he was taken in the morning to Gangni Upazila Health Complex, where he died while under treatment.

His father, Haran Ali, said: "When the snake bit my son on the finger, he came out of the room and told us to tie his hand. Then we took him to the ojha that night. A cobra had bitten him but there was no venom. Later, when my son became more ill, we took him to hospital. Once there, he could not be saved."

Dr Abdullah Aziz, upazila health and family planning officer of Gangni, Meherpur, said: "In the morning a snakebite patient named Shamim Hossain came to the hospital. We treated him, but he came to hospital very late. As a result, he died while under treatment."

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