An animal volunteer managed to rescue a deadly cobra that had got its head trapped inside a discarded beer can in Puri, Odisha.

Snake Helpline volunteer Susant Kumar Behera was called to the scene after a local spotted the helpless snake.

Behera took the cobra back to the office and made a small opening inside the can so the reptile could breathe.

After around 20 minutes the snake was cut free and sprayed with antibiotics before being released into the wild.

Snake Helpline's General Secretary Subhendu Mallik said: "Faulty waste disposal by humans continues to take a toll on the wild animals. Not all animals would be as lucky as this snake. People should crush any can after using it."

Rescuers battled to save the life of a cobra, which was trapped in a beer can, in eastern India on November 30.

A four-feet long spectacled cobra put its head inside an empty beer can that was negligently thrown near a forest in Puri district in eastern India. Its head got trapped in the can and the cobra struggled in vain for a few days trying to free itself.

Jitendra Mohapatra, a resident of Balanga, saw the helpless snake near his house and called Snake Helpline for help. Susant Kumar Behera, a volunteer of the organisation, went to the spot and carefully rescued it.

He took the snake to the Snake Helpline office where a small opening was made in the metal can to let the cobra breathe freely. The cobra's head was inserted in a plastic tube to restrain it from biting the rescuers and the beer can was cut carefully with pliers to free it from its death trap in just 20 minutes.

The general secretary of Snake Helpline, Subhendu Mallik, examined the cobra and assessed that it had only superficial injuries. Antibiotics were sprayed over the bruises and the snake was immediately released back into the wild.

Subhendu Mallik said: "Faulty waste disposal by humans continues to take a toll on the wild animals. Not all animals would be as lucky as this snake. People should crush any can after using it."