Kolhapur monkey mayhem ends; rogue animal returns to forest with troop

Kolhapur: After five days of pursuit, failed darting attempts and mounting fear among residents, forest officials on Wednesday managed to drive a rogue monkey, which left over 70 people injured in Solankur village of Radhanagari tehsil, back into a passing troop of monkeys.The monkey had caused widespread panic, forcing residents to shut doors, windows and terraces, while traders downed shutters and people avoided public spaces. Official records state that the monkey bit 20 people, of whom two remain under observation at a rural hospital. Others sustained injuries from scratches, being pushed, or from falls while trying to escape.A team of around 25 forest department personnel and rescuers had been deployed round-the-clock for five days, with expert monkey catchers called in from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar to assist in trapping the animal.“We have cameras fitted to drones, which can capture images across a 16km periphery. Luckily, we found a troop of monkeys passing by the village, and we decided to take a chance. The rogue monkey was chased for nearly five hours, after which he joined the troop. We called off the operation after the monkey retreated deep into the forest with the troop,” said forest officer Vikas Kale.Officials said the monkey had proved difficult to capture due to its unpredictable movement and ability to sense human presence. It had earlier been darted once, but escaped, and reappeared after the sedative effect wore off.Health officials confirmed that blood samples of those bitten showed no signs of rabies infection.