sa_butta
05-06-2005, 10:52 AM
Rowdy monkeys face the snip
Authorities in an Indian city are planning to crack down on drunk and disorderly monkeys.
Officials in Shimla city are calling for monkeys to be deported or sterilised if they don't move back into the forest.
Wildlife officers have been asked to act following a series of thefts, muggings and car crashes caused by monkeys.
Forestry official A K Gulati, said a supreme court decision to ban the feeding of monkeys had had no effect on their behaviour or numbers.
"The first option is open surgery which we do not advocate in case of monkeys, that is not good," he said.
"The second option is immunisation but it is a costly affair. The third option to look at is the laser technique, which is more safe."
He added a project to entice monkeys back into the forest with fruit would continue.
There are more than 375,000 monkeys in Himachal Pradesh province, of which 80% live in urban areas where develop a taste for liquor, jumping on cars and biting children.
Authorities in an Indian city are planning to crack down on drunk and disorderly monkeys.
Officials in Shimla city are calling for monkeys to be deported or sterilised if they don't move back into the forest.
Wildlife officers have been asked to act following a series of thefts, muggings and car crashes caused by monkeys.
Forestry official A K Gulati, said a supreme court decision to ban the feeding of monkeys had had no effect on their behaviour or numbers.
"The first option is open surgery which we do not advocate in case of monkeys, that is not good," he said.
"The second option is immunisation but it is a costly affair. The third option to look at is the laser technique, which is more safe."
He added a project to entice monkeys back into the forest with fruit would continue.
There are more than 375,000 monkeys in Himachal Pradesh province, of which 80% live in urban areas where develop a taste for liquor, jumping on cars and biting children.