CHENNAI: Tension prevailed near the National Highway near Perungalathur after a six-feet-long venomous cobra slithered out from inside a police booth on Monday night.

A traffic policeman, who was on duty at the booth near the NH, reached for a notebook on the table. He was shocked when a snake suddenly raised its hood and hissed. Soon, the officers ran out screaming for help.

The locals rushed to the booth, but the snake went deeper inside. Then, the Tambaram fire and rescue team visited the spot and started searching for the snake. They captured the cobra and placed it in a plastic bag.

Forest officials later confirmed it was a six-feet-long cobra, one of the most venomous snakes in the region. The snake was handed over to the Forest Department, which later released it into a dense forest area.

Cobra sightings near the highway have increased due to tree cutting and clearing of forest patches around Perungalathur for flyover expansion work, said forest officials, urging the public to be cautious while walking along the stretch, especially at night.