An Indian lawmaker Friday demanded in Parliament that a special squad be deployed to scare away monkeys in a posh area of south New Delhi where members of parliament reside, news reports said, according to dpa. "We are all out to protect forest animals but human life is more important," K Malaisamy of the AIADMK party was quoted as saying by PTI news agency in the Rajya Sabha or upper house of Parliament. If the government did not take any action, lawmakers may have to carry guns for self defence, Malaisamy said. The lawmaker said the monkey menace was a long-standing problem in the South Avenue area, where apartments for members of parliament are located and authorities were not serious about tackling the issue. He suggested the city authorities train a special squad to ward off the monkeys as a temporary measure while a long-term solution was worked out. "It is not a joke. It is a very serious issue," Malaisamy said when Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman K Rahman Khan who was presiding smiled at his interjection. Residents of New Delhi have long been harassed by troops of monkeys who raid houses for food and attack passers-by. Animal protection activists say rampant growth of the city has depleted forest and natural cover which earlier provided food and shelter to the primates who are now forced to forage in densely populated areas.
