38 langoors to scare monkeys away

After the dogs it is the monkey threat that is looming large ahead of the Commonwealth Games.

After the dogs it is the monkey threat that is looming large ahead of the Commonwealth Games.

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To ensure monkeys don't create menace around the Games venues, the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has booked 10 additional langoors who will go around the critical areas in scaring away the monkeys.

The civic body already has 28 langoors but due to Games they have decided to increase the number to 38.

There are a lot of monkeys in the NDMC area especially near the Talkatora Stadium, venue for the swimming events and Shivaji Stadium, which is one of the practice venues for hockey.

According to sources, the civic body had cut down a number of trees for their streetscaping projects and the monkeys that were staying inside the ridge area have started coming out on the main roads.

"From September 28 onwards, we will increase the number of langoors from 28 to 38. The additional langoors will take care of the Games venues and other important areas," said a senior NDMC official.

The officials of the civic body claim that they have been getting a lot of complaints from Mother Teresa Crescent, Sardar Patel Marg, Safdarjung area, RK Puram and Mandir Marg.

"We have monkey catchers for catching all the monkeys in NDMC area and they are relocated in Asola Bhatti Mines. But a number of people have continued to feed them and hence they keep coming out on the main roads," added the official saying, “As these langoors will be deployed at strategic points they will scare away the monkeys.

In the past, the civic body has been getting a number of complaints about monkeys from the Lutyens Delhi. The civic body had then stationed a number of langoors in the VIP area.

With the monkey menace problem intensifying, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) had also recently constituted a special team that has been making rounds of all Games venue facing this problem.

"As Commonwealth Games are just round the corner, we have made a special task force that will catch monkeys from all the venues that are facing the problem including the area around the Games village," said a senior MCD official.