Desperate to keep their crops protected, farmers in Uttar Pradesh's Lakhimpur Kheri used an unconventional method to keep away the monkeys that damage their crops. The farmers of Jahan Nagar village had sought help from the authorities, however, they haven’t received any help, a farmer claimed. According to ANI, there are about 40-45 monkeys that roam free and damage the crops. The farmers all chipped in and bought a bear costume and assigned a person to sit on the farm to prevent the monkeys from damaging crops.
Gajender Singh, a farmer, told ANI that the farmers contributed to collect Rs 4,000 to buy the bear costume.
“40-45 monkeys are roaming in the area and damaging the crops. We appealed to authorities but no attention was paid. So we (farmers) contributed money and bought this costume for Rs 4,000 to protect our crops”, he told ANI.
Meanwhile, Sanjay Biswal the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of Lakhimpur Kheri assured the farmers that they will take all measures to stop monkeys from damaging crops.
According to the Times of India, the farmers are also hiring men for about Rs 250 per day to sit at the farm dressed in costume. A worker said that marauding monkeys and stray cattle can destroy months of hard labour, but the tactic of wearing a costume is working well in the regions. However, he said, it is not easy being in the costume all day in the hot humid season.