PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE / Dehradun
The Municipal Corporation of Dehradun (MCD) launched a monkey sterilisation drive in the provisional State capital on Wednesday to provide relief to residents troubled by human-monkey conflict. Senior municipal veterinary officer Dr Varun Aggarwal said that the campaign is being conducted in coordination with the Forest department.
Aggarwal said that the areas with the highest monkey activity have been identified and cages have been installed to capture the simians. On the first day of the drive, three monkeys were captured from the Kidduwala area of Raipur. He informed that the captured monkeys will undergo sterilisation and will later be released back into forest areas. Joint teams of the MCD and the Forest department are carrying out the operation. Under the campaign, cages are being installed in seven sensitive areas where residents have long complained about monkey-related problems. These areas include Ladpur, Jogiwala, Nawada and RK Puram in Raipur, Rajpur Road, Subhash Nagar, Dalanwala, Ajabpur Kalan and Saharanpur Road.
The human-monkey conflict has become a major concern for residents in many localities of Dehradun. Monkeys often enter homes, take away food items and tear clothes left out to dry on rooftops. There have also been incidents of attacks on children and elderly residents, he added. Aggarwal said that if the campaign continues consistently, the monkey population is expected to decline, which could help reduce such incidents in the future.
