India’s top-ranked IIT is fighting its age-old problem of apes littering the campus. On this World Sustainability Day, the institute launched a ‘hackathon’ to design a functional monkey-proof dustbin to keep these mischief makers away from wet waste baskets. “The winning design will receive funding to build the bin, and after going through trials the model will be replicated all over the campus,” said Prof. Indumati Nambi, the faculty advisor for Sustainable Campus Collective.
Dustbin innovations make it tougher for primates to litter |
Circling the woods of Guindy National Park, the tree-dense IIT has resorted to ‘monkey-proofing’ their hostels and water coolers with nets, cages, and grills; the same venture has not been very successful when it comes to those bins present out in the open. “The institute tried to install a new model of dustbins which were a bit more complicated to operate, within a month’s time monkeys figured those out too!” explained Pranav Jeevan, a former student
Primates often forage organic waste baskets for food which they toss around the campus, interfering with waste segregation goals of the college, explained Prof. Nambi. To add to this problem, cases of apes throwing around their faeces have further complicated work for waste collectors, say students.
“Creative innovations like inverted dustbins with tilted insides make it difficult for monkeys to reach into the dustbins. Now students are working with the administration to better this design,” said Pausali Pradhan, an MS scholar from IITM.
The problem does not stop at waste disposal for IITians. Apes have been reported entering washrooms and leaving water running. The hostel dwellers have also resorted to walking around with sticks or umbrellas to defend themselves from these primates, especially during the evenings. Passersby spotted with food or water bottles have a fair chance of being mugged by their gangs. “Ideally, when a monkey flares their teeth you should stand your ground and growl back at them. But our fight or flight response makes us submit and run away,” says Jeevan.
Despite the hindrances, IIT residents, including the monkeys, have become accustomed to their lives alongside each other. “Monkeys are used to us and never act out of aggression, they steal food and go away. The students also understand that monkeys have always been a part of IIT Madras.” exclaimed a biology student at the institute.
