Police said on Monday that the dead had been identified as Venkatesh, a resident of Hesaraghatta in Bengaluru. The deceased had come to Muthati with his family and friends to visit the temple.
The victim was caught by the crocodile which dragged him into deeper spot in the river. Panicked witnesses immediately alerted some of the local youth, who promptly jumped into the perilous waters to rescue the man. After hitting the crocodile with sticks and scaring it away, they managed to pull Venkatesh back out of the water.
It was however, too late for the victim as he lost his left foot and suffered other serious injuries in the attack. He passed away before the youth were able to rescue him.Environmentalists and authorities of the locality have said that this was the first of such an incident in this spot.
