Nirmal monkey rehab centre strained by funds, workload
TELANGANA: The monkey menace continues to trouble urban and rural areas across Telangana. The State’s only Monkey Rehabilitation Centre (MRC), located in Nirmal district, is grappling with fund constraints and heavy workload even as Forest department officials step up efforts to control the problem.
The MRC, established in 2020 at Chincholi village on the outskirts of Nirmal town, was set up at an estimated cost of ₹2.2 crore. Located within an urban forest park, it is the second such facility in the country after Himachal Pradesh and is run by the Forest department.
High caseload, limited staff
Staffed by a veterinary doctor, an assistant, four helpers and a data entry operator, the centre carries out between 100 and 150 sterilisations every month. Officials said about ₹15 lakh generated annually from the urban park is earmarked for the facility.
A veterinary doctor from a veterinary hospital in Sarangapur mandal and an assistant from Jagtial district have been deputed to conduct birth control surgeries. Professional monkey catchers from Nellore and other parts of Andhra Pradesh are engaged to capture animals from towns and villages.
Call for more centres
“The centre is successfully conducting surgeries and contributing to controlling the menace. However, eradication is possible only with adequate funds for sterilisations, pre- and post-operative care, food, transportation and release of monkeys into the wild,” an official said.
Officials said the centre urgently needs a dedicated veterinary doctor and additional supporting staff. As the only facility in Telangana, it faces severe workload, with monkeys brought in from Nirmal and neighbouring Jagtial, Adilabad, Nizamabad, Mancherial and Kumram Bheem Asifabad districts.
They suggested setting up similar rescue and rehabilitation centres at every district headquarters to ease pressure on the Nirmal facility. Such centres could function under the veterinary department and local civic bodies, particularly after monkeys were deleted from Schedule II of the Wildlife Protection Act in 2022. Services of self-help groups, voluntary organisations and youth bodies could also be utilised to tackle the issue across the State.
