KATHMANDU, Feb 6: The Agriculture, Cooperative and Natural Resources Committee of the House of Representatives (HoR) has directed the government to build physical infrastructure for monkey sterilization.
The parliamentary committee meeting held on Wednesday directed the Ministry of Forests and Environment (MoFE) to develop resources from the upcoming Fiscal Year (FY) to develop physical infrastructure for sterilization. The committee has directed the MoFE to submit a report to the committee within 15 days on the legal policy issues that need to be considered for this.
Last year, the committee started discussions on how to prevent monkeys after they caused significant damage to agricultural crops. The committee monitored monkey sterilization in Himachal Pradesh, India, from March 18 to 22, 2024. Veterinarians Dr Babul Thakur and Dr Chandrakala Rana also participated in the monitoring.
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Stating that there are three types of monkeys in Nepal - rhesus macaque, Assamese monkey and Hanuman langur, Veterinarian Thakur said that around Rs 50 million would be required to manage sterilization in Nepal.
He said that the cost of building a sterilization facility, purchasing sterilization equipment, feeding the animals after sterilization and the fee for adopting the monkeys would be around Rs 50 million. Dr Rana said that training has been provided in Nepal to sterilize male monkeys, but training is yet to be provided in sterilizing female monkeys.
Dr Kedar Subedi, general secretary of the Nepal Veterinary Association, said that there is a lack of expertise in sterilizing monkeys in Nepal, the law needs to be amended, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development MoFE and should take the initiative for this.
Dr Ram Chandra Kandel, director general of the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, said that there should be a discussion on monkey sterilization in the national policy and strategy. He said that instead of sterilization, there should be a focus on where monkeys are increasing and find ways to reduce them naturally. He said that the local level should be made responsible for this.
Former Forest Minister Mahato said that a sterilization campaign should be launched by preparing physical infrastructure worth Rs 50 million in each of the seven provinces. He said that a demand of Rs. 350 million should be made from the Ministry of Finance for this.
