(Iran's Environment News Agency) - Forty Indian men have been hired to impersonate monkeys to scare away the real monkeys from Delhi's parliament and other government buildings.
The men make screeching noises similar to those of black-faced langur monkeys, to frighten red-faced macaque monkeys.
Thousands of macaque monkeys roam Delhi's streets, trashing gardens and offices and attacking people for food.
But the animals are considered sacred by Hindus, who often feed them, encouraging them to remain.
Delhi's civic authorities were earlier using real langurs to keep monkeys away from the parliament complex.
But the practice had to be abandoned after protests from animal rights activists and a court order that keeping monkeys in captivity was cruel.
India's Minister for Urban Development M Venkaiah Naidu informed parliament on Thursday that the municipal authorities were now hiring men to impersonate langur monkeys.
"Various efforts are being made to tackle the monkey and dog menace inside and around the parliament house... The measures include scaring the monkeys away by trained persons who disguise themselves as langurs," he said.
This "very talented" group of men imitate the whoops and barks of langurs and hide behind trees to ward off the aggressive animals, officials of the Delhi municipality said.
Delhi's large population of stray monkeys has been a long-standing problem and they are considered a public nuisance.
They have caused havoc, riding on the city's metro trains, and roaming through parliament, invading the prime minister's office and the defence ministry.
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