Rehab centres for monkeys to be set up in 10 TN districts

In a bid to curb simian menace, the Tamil Nadu Forest Department has proposed to set up rehabilitation centres for monkeys in 10 districts in the state.
In total, 10 sites - in Udhagamandalam, Coimbatore, Tiruchirappalli, Tirunelveli, Ramanathapuram, Kanyakumari, Salem, Erode, Madurai and Vellore - have been identified for the project, according to an official statement of the district forest department here.
The statement said that cages for housing the monkeys are already available while other necessary equipmentwould be procured soon.
If the periodic surveys reveal that monkey population was abnormally high then sterilization of 'alpha and beta' males would be taken and then they would be released in jungle, said District Forest Officer Nihar Ranjan.

Earlier, various methods to control the monkeys' population have proven unsuccessful.
The Madurai rehabilitation centre is likely to serve neighbouring Theni and Sivaganga districts as well.
The monkeys trapped there would be brought to the rehabilitation centre in Madurai.