Chennai: Remember Arif, the farmer from Amethi in Uttar Pradesh? The one who had saved and nursed an injured Sarus crane, and built a bond with it and his mental suffering when the bird was taken away from him?
A similar tale of rare man-animal bonding and painful separation has played out in Tamil Nadu – this time between a veterinarian and a baby monkey.
Last December, when Valliappan, a veterinarian and animal lover from Coimbatore, visited Ranipet district for a dog sterilisation camp, a forest guard had brought a two-month old injured bonnet macaque that was bitten by a dog and had symptoms of rabies. Valliappan treated the monkey, which weight just 200 grams, and kept the animal in his personal care for the past 10 months. All through this period, the macaque remained dependent on him including for feeding, sleeping and excretion.
However, 10 days ago, Forest officials took away the baby monkey from him and moved it to the Arignar Anna Zoological Park in Chennai. Unable to bear the separation and apprehending that the monkey might fall ill, Valliappan has since moved the Madras High Court seeking to that the animal be handed over to him for care. He assured the court that he would filed reports periodically about the progress and also produce it before Forest officials when required.
On Wednesday, Justice C V Karthikeyan said the case of human-animal bond must be handled sensitively and permitted Valliappan to meet and ‘interact’ with the macaque at the Vandalur zoo on November 9. A report regarding the ‘interaction’ between him and the animal shall be submitted in the court by him and Forest officials on November 19. Thereafter the court will take a decision on Valliappan’s plea for interim custody of the money till it is able to feed on its own.
