Locals in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh were surprised to find a large crocodile had wandered into their temple on January 8.

Footage showed a group of residents of Shivpuri using a large stick to remove the angry 5-foot-long reptile from their place of worship and return it to the water.

According to reports, the crocodile climbed out of a nearby lake before straying onto temple grounds.

A crocodile strayed into human habitations in search of food in central India's Madhya Pradesh on January 8. The incident took place in the city of Shivpuri.

Visuals feature the locals using a giant stick to rescue the crocodile crawling near the temple in broad daylight. Following this, a huge crowd gathers to witness the occurrence, while the creature attempts to free itself. However, upon witnessing the crowd, the crocodile flaunts its jaws, giving onlookers a sight to behold.

The five to eight-foot-long long crocodile emerged from the ponds and crawled its way onto the shore of the temple near the fairground in Shivpuri. However, the locals used collective force to rescue it and later released it into the pond to avoid any mishap.