The New Indian Express 03.09.2010
Hunt for monkeys begins in twin cities
The hunters are reportedly from Uttar Pradesh and the drive will be taken up under the guidelines of the forest department.
Denizens residing in different localities in the twin cities have been facing the simian problem for a long time. Perched at the top of apartments, buildings, telephone and electric wires, the monkeys are constantly on the lookout for eatables and attack anybody carrying food items.
A few cases of people falling prey to monkey attacks and getting injured hav been reported.
Dr P Venkateswara Reddy, chief veterinary officer of GHMC told Expresso they have hired as many as 15 teams of professional hunters. “We will pay Rs 650 to Rs 750 per each monkey caught and the hunters will catch the monkeys by setting up cages as per guidelines of forest department,” he added.
The forest department has given permission to GHMC officials to catch at least 500 monkeys, which are creating menace at Padmarao Nagar, Osmania University campus, Koti, DBR Mills, east and west Maredpalli, Vidyanagar, Begumpet and many localities in Secunderabad.
Reddy said the teams had already caught 200 monkeys in the past ten days and the operation will continue. After catching the monkeys, GHMC shifted them to Amberpet where forest officials ensure monkeys are segregated into males and females.
They are kept in separate cages and sterilised. “We are planning to free them in the forest area of Khammam-Chhattisgarh as per guidelines of the forest department,’’ Reddy said.
The move to check the monkey menace began after hundreds of complaints reached the GHMC. Dr JD Wilson, assistant director, Monkey Complaints Cell said, “Every day we are receiving as many as five to eight complaints of monkey menace.
We are concentrating our efforts on specific localities from where we received complaints.
According to reports, hundreds of monkeys are coming out from the Narsapur forest area in Medak district and moving to different places in twin cities.
They stay on trees in areas like DBR Mills and many localities in Secunderabad and keep moving in residential areas in search for food.
