Puri temple drives out monkeys

Puri, Feb 9 (UNI) The Jagannath temple administration has finally geared up its action to drive out the monkeys which have become a nuisance for the thousands of devotees, who throng the temple every day.

A 12-member monkey catcher team of Mankadias and Pahadias, the primitive tribes from Mayurbhanj district, had arrived here on February seven to capture the monkeys from the temple premises during the late night hours.

Temple sources said in their first attempt the team trapped eight monkeys and shifted them to other places with the help of forest officials.

Perturbed over the monkey menace, the temple administration had, last year, requested the Mayurbhanj District Collector to extend help in driving out the apes from the temple premises.

Over a thousand monkeys had made the 12th century edifice as their shelter home for years together inviting wrath from the visiting devotees, the sources said.

The operation to trap the monkeys would continue during the late night hours as it would be difficult in the presence of devotees inside the temple, sources added.

UNI