- Ramu (monkey)
Ramu is an 8-year old
monkey living in theBaleswar district of the Indian state ofOrissa . The monkey was kept behind bars at the Remuna police station in Orissa for 5 years on the charge of disturbingcommunal harmony.Arrest
Ramu was three years old when he attacked and bit a number of children in Jagannathpur village. A
Muslim family was taking care of Ramu while the children belonged to theHindu community, sparking communal tension in the area. [cite news
url = http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1820770,000900030010.htm
title = 'Jihadi' monkey behind bars
work =
publisher = Hindustan Times
pages =
page =
date = 2006-10-15
accessdate = 2006-10-19] The localpolice decided to arrest the animal after the incident. Once freed, the monkey again went back to biting children leading to his second arrest by the police. The police decided to put him behind bars for good.Release
Under Indian
wildlife rules,Rhesus Macaque monkeys like Ramu are a Schedule IIendangered species and cannot be kept as pets or in cages. Wildlife activists demanded that some action be taken by the Forest Department of the state.cite news
url = http://archive.gulfnews.com/articles/06/10/15/10074926.html
title = Ramu checks in and the activists go wild
work =
publisher = IANS
pages =
page =
date = 2006-10-15
accessdate = 2006-10-19] The police claim to have treated the animal well giving it regular meals. According to Niranjan Kumar Dhir, the officer-in-charge at the Remuna police station, the monkey was given regular baths and fed four times a day. Following more pressure from the activists and worldwide attention brought to Ramu's plight [ [http://www.angelfire.com/planet/ramuthemonkey/Ramunews.htm Ramu in the News] ] , the police released the monkey and handed it over to wildlife officials onOctober 18 2006 . [cite news
url = http://www.ndtv.com/environment/wildlife.asp?fromtimeline=true&id=95065&callid=1&template=wildlife
title = Orissa: Illegally captured monkey released
work =
publisher = NDTV
pages =
page =
date = 2006-10-19
accessdate = 2006-10-19]Notes
References
* Ramu in the News [http://www.angelfire.com/planet/ramuthemonkey/Ramunews.htm]
* Video of Ramu's arrest [http://www.nbc5i.com/video/10089158/index.html] (use nbc5i.com search feature to find Ramu video)
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.