India has found a creative solution to address the issue of wild monkeys causing trouble ahead of the upcoming G20 summit in New Delhi.
To protect floral arrangements and ensure the safety of foreign delegates from monkey attacks, the city has employed “monkey-men” and placed cutouts of langurs, a type of primate that is feared by the local monkey population.
The New Delhi Municipal Council has enlisted over 30 “monkey-men,” individuals skilled in mimicking langur sounds, with the aim of scaring away the smaller and more aggressive monkeys that often disrupt the city. These monkeys are known for causing chaos by darting across busy roads and occasionally attacking people.
Satish Upadhyay, Vice Chairman of the New Delhi Municipal Council, explained that since it’s not feasible to remove the monkeys from their natural habitats, they’ve assembled a team of trained individuals to deter them. Each hotel where foreign delegates are staying and other monkey-prone areas will have a designated monkey-man.
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New Delhi will experience significant disruptions during the G20 summit on September 9-10, including road closures and business closures. To prevent monkeys from entering the city, authorities have started providing food in forested areas. Additionally, strategically placed cutouts of langurs have already proven effective in deterring monkeys from areas where they are located.
It’s worth noting that this isn’t the first time New Delhi has used langurs to address its monkey problem during a major international event. Live langurs were employed during the 2010 Commonwealth Games. However, monkeys have demonstrated increased intelligence, as they managed to destroy a plastic langur equipped with recorded langur sounds within three days.
