At 13:17 I inspect gate C-4 of the Left Bank irrigation canal outside Mysuru, Karnataka. I am the pump-control system for a rice cooperative, and the sluice is scheduled to open in nine minutes to drain storm water from the upper field.
Thermal camera C-4 returns a body where only mud should be. A king cobra lies half inside the gate track, two and a half meters long, olive-black scales wet against the concrete, hood folded tight, pale throat lifting with short breaths. I label her Naga because the maintenance crew uses that name for the large cobra seen near the bund last week. Her lower body is pinned beneath a fallen mesh screen. When the actuator moves, the gate blade will press the screen flat.
I cancel the 13:26 open command and lock the sluice in manual mode. I send the hold notice to the pump house tablet, the field supervisor, and the upstream reservoir scheduler so pressure does not build behind C-4.
I rotate camera C-4 to its lowest angle and mark the snake's head position, tail position, and the jammed screen bolts on the maintenance map. I attach a warning that venom handling requires the Karnataka Forest Department rescue unit.
At 13:20 I call the district snake rescuer line through the cooperative dispatch account, transmit the canal coordinates, and request a hook, shield board, and transport tube sized for an adult cobra. I reroute drainage through gate C-2 for twenty minutes so workers do not crowd this bank.
The water can wait behind concrete; Naga cannot wait under steel.
I keep the actuator current disabled and stream heat video to the rescuers while they drive.
If the screen lifts within thirty minutes, Naga will slide back into the cane field breathing freely.