Visitors asked not to feed monkeys to stay safe in Margalla Hills

Islamabad: The Islamabad Wildlife Management Board (IWMB) has imposed ban on feeding monkeys to ensure the safety of the visitors all along the Margalla hills.

The signboards have been installed on different locations to inform the visitors that they are not allowed to feed monkeys, which can anytime attack them due to various reasons.

According to the details, a staff member of IWMB was patrolling the hills when he faced a group of monkeys. When he did not give any food to them one of them attacked and injured him.

There were also some other incidents in which monkeys attacked the visitors in search of food. The monkey bites might cause transmission of serious diseases including rabies, tuberculosis, infectious hepatitis, herpes and even the deadly Marburg.

Now the monkey attacks at the Margalla Hills have become a matter of grave concern for the visitors all along the zig-zag road leading up to the scenic Pir Sohawa.

Pakistan Wetlands Programme (PWP) has already asked people not to approach wild monkeys in the Margalla Hills let alone feeding them as the practice is not only making them lazy but also aggressive.

The visitors often get close and feed monkeys with a range of foods from chips, buns, biscuits, popcorns and even chocolates.

The food is also tossed to the bonnets of vehicles to attract monkeys and when they approach, the visitors take pictures from behind the windscreen.

The IWMB informed that monkeys play an important role in maintaining healthy forest ecosystems. They accelerate the process of seed dispersal as their diet consists majorly of fruits. When habituated feeding leads them out of their natural habitat, it also affects the health of the forests and alters their foraging patterns.

It advised the visitors to keep a distance of a few meters, at a minimum, and never try to pet, touch or feed monkeys to avoid being attacked by them.