Langur kept as illegal pet to shoo away monkeys rescued in Agra

Agra, April 20 The alarming simian nuisance in Agra, Mathura and Vrindavan was once again highlighted when a langur held as a pet was rescued from a posh colony by the UP forest department officials.

The city is home to thousands of monkeys, with many turning aggressive due to the scorching heat and lack of food. In recent past, there have been many instances of monkeys attacking tourists in the vicinity of the Taj Mahal. Citizens have been demanding relocation of monkeys to the forests, but despite repeated outrage, the authorities have failed to come up with plans to contain the simian menace.

In Mathura, the forest department had announced a plan to sterilise the monkeys to control breeding, but the project was shelved for unknown reasons. The pilgrims in Vrindavan live in fear, as the monkeys run away with their bags or spectacles.

Officials of the Wild Life SOS said that they had acted on a complaint and freed a langur that was being used to shoo away monkeys in the Lajpat Kunj area, near Bagh Farzana.

The langur was tied with a rope around its neck on the terrace. The Wildlife SOS rapid response unit carefully removed the rope and after a thorough on-site medical examination, released the langur back into its natural habitat.

Taking advantage of the age-old rivalry between langurs and monkeys, poachers capture langurs from the wild so they can be trained to tackle the rising monkey menace in various cities across India.

Since the langur is protected under Schedule II of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, it cannot be owned, sold, bought, traded or hired by anyone. Any violation of the law leads to a penalty or a three-year jail term, or both.

Ram Gopal Singh, Range Officer Forest, Agra, said, "This is the third langur we have freed this month. Earlier, forest department and Wildlife SOS rescued two langurs from Kamla Nagar and Sanjay Place in Agra. There is an urgent need to educate the public that this is an illegal practice and no wild animal should be exploited for any reason."

Kartick Satyanarayan, Co-founder and CEO, Wildlife SOS, said, "It is a myth that monkeys are afraid of langurs. Human-primate conflict, often termed as monkey menace, is on the rise because of the fragmentation and disappearance of the original habitat that these animals depend on.

"Today, cities generate enough garbage which provides feeding grounds for monkeys. Moreover, people also feed monkeys for religious sentiments which further leads to the exploitation of langurs."

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