Centre renews notification declaring monkeys as vermin in Himachal

OVER THE YEARS, THE MONKEY ATTACKS HAVE TURNED AGGRESSIVE WHILE THE LOCALS ARE STILL RELUCTANT TO HARM THE ANIMAL BELIEVING IT TO BE THE DESCENDANT OF LORD HANUMAN

SHIMLA: Heeding to the request of the Himachal Pradesh forest department, the Union ministry of environment and forests has renewed its notification declaring monkeys as vermin in 38 tehsils, along with state capital Shimla, for a year.

The notification allows for culling of monkeys and incentivises people to kill the simians. The state government’s request to declare monkeys as vermin in other parts of the state has not found favour.

Interestingly, over the past year when the notification was issued (it expired in September), not a single monkey has been killed with farmers reluctant to harm the animal, due to religious sentiments, believing it to be the descendant of Lord Hanuman.

2,300 VILLAGES HIT BY MONKEY MENACE

The state has been struggling with the burgeoning monkey population with as many as 2,300 villages in the state hit by the menace.

The agriculture department has reported that it assessed a loss of ₹185 crore to crops from wild animals. The marauding monkeys and birds cause an annual loss of ₹150 crore to horticultural crops. Over the years, the monkey attacks have also turned aggressive.

A survey by the wildlife wing has pegged the monkey population in Shimla municipal limits at 2,452. The department identified eight spots that were the most vulnerable to monkey attacks, including Jakhu, Summer Hill, Glen and Kaithu.

“It has been conveyed to us by the ministry that monkeys have been declared vermin in 38 tehsils, but the notification will be issued after the model code of conduct for elections is over,” principal chief conservator forest (wildlife wing) RC Kang told HT.

The forest department has also increased the incentive for culling monkeys from ₹500 to ₹700.