MONKEY BUSINESS: Villagers block road to demand government action after monkeys kidnap children

A Langur monkey looks for fleas, which he snacks on, on a wild pig busy eating refuse near Amber Palace, outside Jaipur, Rajasthan, India, in this file photo. Monkeys near Ateva village have parents concerned after carrying off half a dozen children in two days. John MacDougall/AFP/Getty Images

Jaipur, Dec 31 (IANS) Hundreds of people protested in Rajasthan’s Karauli district Monday, demanding the removal of menacing monkeys who have carried away half a dozen children in two days and dumped them after biting them severely, police said.

The agitation took place at Ateva village in the district, some 200 km from Jaipur.

“Over 500 people – half of them women – demonstrated by blocking a state highway for two hours today (Monday). They were trying to draw the attention of district administration towards the monkey menace in their village,” Ninnu Singh, SHO Kaila Devi, told IANS.

The officer said that a two-month old infant who was sleeping in the courtyard of a house was taken away by a group of monkeys Sunday.

“They bit him severely. The villagers found the infant at an isolated place in the village a few hours later. The child was seriously injured and is admitted in a hospital. His condition is stated to be serious,” said the officer.

The villagers alleged that the simians had taken away five other children in the past two days.

“The children were playing when they were attacked by the monkeys. The villagers say that the monkeys take away the children with them to dump them later after biting them,” said the officer.

Senior police and administration officers rushed to the spot to placate the agitating villagers.

“The villagers were assured that experts from the forest department will be roped in to catch the monkeys. The villagers agreed to remove the blockade after two hours,” said the officer.

Tags: blockade, children, monkeys, Rajasthan, simians