108 wild monkeys shifted to new habitat

New Delhi, Mar 8 (UNI) The Municipal authorities today submitted before the Delhi High Court that at least 108 wild monkeys had been trapped and released at a new habitat in the south of the Capital.

Appearing before a bench of Justice Swatanter Kumar and Justice HR Malhotra, the MCD Counsel said these monkeys had been released after a health check-up at the 100-acre natural habitat at Bhatti mines in the southern part of the national capital.

Reserving the judgement, the court said the final order on the PIL filed by a NGO to get rid of monkey menace would be pronounced later, mentioning the directions to be followed by the authorities for the maintenance of the habitat.

MCD Counsel Jubeda Begum said the state government had earmarked funds in the budget to provide food and water for the simians in the enclosure.

A fibre glass boundary wall had been erected to prevent the monkeys from straying out from the habitat to other locality.

Due to unavailability of a veternary doctor, a senior doctor from the AIIMS was put on service to check the health of the trapped monkeys. ''Most of the monkeys were found to be in sound health,'' said the MCD Counsel.

The Court had formed a sub-committee comprising Delhi Chief Wildlife Warden(CWW), Joint Secretary Ministry of Forest and Environment, Joint Director Delhi Development Authority(DDA), Directors Enforcement of Municipal Corporation of Delhi(MCD) and New Delhi Municipal Committee(NDMC) to suprevise the trapping and smooth movement of a large number of Rhesus monkeys to the habitat.

In the meantime, the Municipal authorities had banned public feeding of monkeys in the capital. The people were advised to deposit the food material with the authorities at strategic points, to be carried to the enclosure on Tuesday and Thursday.

UNI