Farmers in UP don bear costumes to scare away monkeys

The farmers in Lakhimpur Kheri’s Jahan Nagar village are forced to wear bear costumes to scare away monkeys from damaging their sugarcane crop.

farmer dressed as bear UP Lakhimpur kheri

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A grazing trip from monkeys or stray cattle can render months of labour put into harvesting crops useless. While farmers across the country use scarecrows and keep regular watch over their crops, many farmers in Uttar Pradesh are now donning bear costumes to prevent monkeys from damaging their sugarcane crop.

While talking to ANI, Gajender Singh, a farmer, said: “40-45 monkeys are roaming in the area and damaging the crops. We appealed to authorities but no attention was paid. So, we (farmers) contributed money and bought this costume for Rs 4,000 to protect our crops.”

Uttar Pradesh | Farmers in Lakhimpur Kheri's Jahan Nagar village use a bear costume to prevent monkeys from damaging their sugarcane crop

40-45 monkeys are roaming in the area and damaging the crops. We appealed to authorities but no attention was paid. So we (farmers)… pic.twitter.com/IBlsvECB2A

— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) June 25, 2023

On Sunday, ANI shared pictures of a farmer wearing a bear costume and sitting in the midst of a farm. Commenting on these photos, a Twitter user wrote: “just another day in the life of a farmer in India. if prices do not get you, weather will. if weather doesn’t get you stray cattle will. if stray cattle doesn’t get you, monkeys will…”

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This is not the only instance in which farmers have decided to act as ‘living scarecrows’ to protect their crops. In March last year, Bhaskar Reddy, a farmer from Telangana made news after he wore a sloth bear costume to protect his produce. According to news agency ANI, Reddy adopted this unique method to tackle the menace of wild boars and monkeys that keep damaging his crops.

Initially, Reddy and his son took turns in wearing the costume to the fields. However, Reddy told ANI that he is now paying someone to do the job for them. “I’ve hired a person for Rs 500 a day to wear the costume and walk around the field to keep the animals away,” he said.

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