Bagful' GHMC stops catching monkeys

Civic officials have stopped catching monkeys in the city for the past 20 days. Reason: They have 500 simians in their captivity and
forest department has not given permission to release them in forest areas. Unless they are released, it cannot take up fresh drive to catch monkeys.

Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) officials said thousands of monkeys were released in the forest areas of Adilabad, Srisailam (Kurnool), Warangal and Khammam. However, locals of Visakhapatnam agency have opposed releasing of monkeys in their forest areas.

Last year, the then forest minister S Vijayarama Raju directed the chief conservator of forest not to release monkeys in the agency areas as they reportedly damaged coffee plantations and attacked tourists near Araku Valley and Borra caves.

Recently, the chief conservator of forest wrote a letter to forest range officers of Adilabad, Nizamabad, Rajahmundry and Visakhapatnam whether there was any scope to release monkeys.

"Though there are forest areas in Chittoor, Kadapa and Anantapur district, they cannot be released in those areas as the local species in those areas are Bonnet monkeys while Rhesus monkeys inhabit other areas. Both these sub-species cannot stay together," a GHMC official said. Similarly Bonnet monkeys cannot be released in other district areas.