Oddly enough, a 65 year-old farmer Pappan from a small village in a southern Indian state of Kerala, has personified the basic principle that generations of journalists have been taught to revere - 'man biting dog' as a proverbial definition of what 'news' is.
A rabid dog, which had been frightening village residents for the past few weeks, stole a duck from Pappan's home. In a fit of anger, the farmer sprang on the animal and the two fell into a muddy ditch fighting.
The dog bit the man's hand and the latter sank his teeth into the animal's neck with all his might, so hard that he drew blood.
Only after both the man and the animal were exhausted did local residents come to Pappan's rescue clubbing the canine to death.
The farmer is currently undergoing a course of treatment for rabies in a local hospital.
Indian laws prohibit killing stray animals and, despite a sterilization program, the country has a large stray dog population, estimated at a total of about 25 million.
Dogs are considered to be the main spreader of rabies, which kills nearly 30,000 Indians annually, more than half of those worldwide.
