Monkey encounters rise as Bengaluru pushes its borders

The 'monkey menace' has become such a frequent recurrence that officials have opened a file to look into each case.

For people who spent their life’s savings to own a high-end apartment on the edge of Bengaluru, the green view they romanticised has turned into a nightmare, thanks to monkeys which have adapted to the concrete jungle that has replaced the forests in the last three decades. Officials said even five years ago, complaints about monkeys were rare and were usually resolved by bursting firecrackers. Now, the “monkey menace” is such a frequent recurrence that officials have opened a file to look into each case.

“We receive four to five complaints every month. Of them, two or three are written complaints by scared residents. There are also rare cases where people are concerned about the animals,” DCF N Ravindrakumar said. Breaking into the house, damaging property to steal food lying around and even from refrigerators, snatching food from children and the elderly and even biting a security guard, the monkeys have caused enough nuisance.

The Forest Department’s records explain the reason for the rise in complaints. The area under forest cover in three districts of Bengaluru Urban, Bengaluru Rural and Ramanagara has declined from 1,168.02 sq km in 2000-01 to 709.46 sq km in 2020-21, a decline of 458.56 sq km. In addition, studies have shown that the disappearing green cover in the peri-urban areas has led to increased human-animal interaction. 

A complaint from the Gopalan Jewels Apartments on Konanakunte Cross said “25-30 monkeys” have become “very aggressive, often injuring children at play, invading houses and leaving the balconies with their excreta”. Residents of Mantri Web City on Hennur Road, Purva Palm Beach apartment and Someshwara Layout in Abbigere had similar complaints. A pregnant female monkey in Mantri Astra apartment prompted one Deepali, a resident, to call the department for an immediate rescue operation.

Residents of Someshwara Swamy Layout at Abbigere in north Bengaluru said the issue gets worse as the simians became aggressive.

“Recently, this menace peaked as it was summer and there was scarcity of food and water,” the association said.

Last month, the Chief Conservator of Forests issued an office memorandum directing officials to follow standard operating procedures (SOP) to relocate the animals.

“The SOP is laid down but range forest officers and other staffers are not trained to handle monkeys. We have senior officials to guide us in trapping and rescuing leopards, elephants and tigers. But nobody knows how to catch a monkey. That has become a problem as any small mistake during an operation can go viral on social media and put us in trouble,” a field officer said.

Arijit Pal, Postdoctoral Associate, Animal Behaviour and Cognition Programme at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) said the rise in complaints was more likely due to the habitat destruction rather than a rise in the monkey population.

“Several studies have shown the population of bonnet macaques, the most common of the simians in south India, are on the decline in cities. Within Bengaluru, the monkey population has come down drastically in the last 10 years. Both loss and fragmentation of the habitat has dealt a major blow,” he said.

Pal said there was also a change in the tolerance level of the people.

“Until a few years ago, macaques existed with people but did not depend on us entirely. Since cities then still had space for natural vegetation, the interaction was minimal. Now, they are forced to adapt to changed circumstances and the dependency on humans has grown. In the long run, that leads to irritation and intolerance,” he added.