Jaipur: Monkey raids have become an unlikely but urgent election issue in Jaipur’s civic polls, with residents across several wards pressing candidates for a time-bound plan to curb attacks and daily damage to homes.In parts of Adarsh Nagar, Malviya Nagar, the Walled City and Amer, residents say monkey troops routinely enter houses, wreck plants and household items, raid kitchens and refrigerators, and endanger people on balconies and rooftops. Some have reported being attacked.At Bees Dukan in Adarsh Nagar, resident Amit Mirchandani said a troop recently damaged the roof of his first-floor building, destroyed plants and damaged a Gautama Buddha statue.“I have told all three ward contenders that peace, development and spiritual calm can wait until the monkeys stop redecorating my house,” Mirchandani said.Residents say the problem has worsened over the past two to three years, especially in areas bordering Jaipur Municipal Corporation (JMC) Heritage and JMC Greater, including Raja Park, Moti Doongri Road, Chatri, Frontier Colony and Sindhi Colony.They also allege uneven civic action. While JMC Heritage has outsourced monkey-catching to an agency, residents in JMC Greater areas say they have largely been left to handle it themselves.A JMC official linked the spread of the problem to nearby forested hills. “The north eastern part of Jaipur reels under this problem as these monkeys come from the hilly forests of Amer and Jhalana regions,” the official said, adding that the city has seen unusual incidents linked to monkeys, including one case in which a monkey allegedly snatched a murder weapon from a police station before it could be submitted as evidence in court.Candidates say the issue is coming up repeatedly on the campaign trail. “I am a victim of this menace too. Several residents have raised the issue during campaigning and, if elected, I will take it seriously,” said Rahul Tanwar, Congress candidate from Ward 81.Residents want candidates to commit to coordinated, regular monkey-catching operations and steps to prevent the animals from entering residential neighbourhoods.
