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Monkeys in Parliament force government to hire langurs

Use a monkey to catch a monkey.

That seems to be the mantra of despairing authorities who have "hired" a langur, or long-tailed leaf monkey, to chase away the growing simian menace from the hallowed precincts of Parliament.

The black-faced langurs are part of the official monkey-catching squad deployed to drive away the hordes of rhesus monkeys that often seem to have the run of government buildings in the national capital.

But the langur's services are not free. Its keepers are being paid Rs 7,500 a month to ensure a trouble-free session for parliamentarians.

Officials say some 2,000 monkeys have made the presidential palace, the prime minister's office, Parliament House and several ministries their home. And langurs are known to be a terror to the smaller simians who have so long cocked a snook at monkey-catchers who were employed to rid the government area of their tribe.

The marauding rhesus monkeys have been known to tear up official papers, steal lunches and on occasion even break furniture. For fear of being attacked, employees avoid venturing out to the lush lawns surrounding the buildings and keep their windows shut.

In their bid to rid the area of monkeys, authorities had tried several ploys, including fencing off the compound, using bananas spiked with sedatives as bait and contracting professional monkey catchers. But none of those methods bore any results, and hence the langur.

Animal activists say the attacks by monkeys are a result of the monkey's territory being invaded, of the shrinking green area in the sprawling 1,483 square kilometre city, poor management by civic authorities and a monkey-worshipping public.

Indo-Asian News Service

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