In the district of Lakhimpur Kheri in Uttar Pradesh, farmers are facing chaos from monkeys that are devastating their crops. To defend their fields, they have resorted to a unique strategy—roaming as 'bears' to shield their wheat, chili, banana, mustard, and more from monkey attacks.
The entire situation takes place in the villages of Lakhimpur Kheri's Dhaurahara region, where the monkey terror is so extreme that farmers find themselves donning bear outfits just to walk their fields.
A farmer from Ghughuta village explained the dire monkey threat necessitates this 'bear' tactic. They run tirelessly after the monkeys in hopes they’ll flee and leave their crops untouched. In mere moments, entire fields fall prey to these monkey hordes, prompting this creative defense strategy.
Another village resident, farmer Satya Prakash, shared their overwhelming struggles with monkeys. Even in bear costumes, the monkeys often don't retreat. They spend the entire day defending crops, and keeping vigil at night. The crops first have to be protected from insects and stray animals, and whatever survives is consumed by monkeys.
Farmer Chhotelal echoed these sentiments, expressing that monkeys gorge on all their crops. Without chasing them off, there would be nothing left to eat. When they attempt to chase them away, monkeys sometimes charge at the farmers. Various strategies have been tried to repel them, yet the crops remain endangered. Complaints to officials have fallen on deaf ears.
