High court order on Delhi`s monkeys gets mixed response
There appears to be no way to contain the simian menace. Monkeys continue to stray into densely populated areas; driving them out has become a challenging task. Mooting a solution, the Delhi High Court in February ordered the Delhi government, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, the New Delhi Municipal Council and the Delhi Development Authority to shift monkeys to the Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary in the city.
"According to the court order, four cages should be kept at vantage points. These room-size, walk-in cages will have food and other incentives for monkeys. Monkeys will be allowed to familiarise themselves with the cages and the doors will be locked when a majority of them are in. They will then be transported to the Asola Bhatti sanctuary,' says Sonya Ghosh of the Citizens for Welfare and Protection of Animals, a Delhi-based ngo. Happy with the order, Ghosh says it is "humane and compassionate'.
But Iqbal Malik, primatologist and founder-director of Vatavaran, an ngo, feels the solution lies in a