Timely efforts by judge help save newborn monkey in distress

Help arrived in time for a newborn monkey, thanks to the efforts of a local judge here on Sunday.

A troop of monkeys was jumping from tree to tree, when a pregnant member lost her balance and fell to the ground in front of Stella Mari’s School.

The impact tore her stomach and the baby was delivered prematurely. Struggling for life, the mother and baby cried for help. The other monkeys surrounded their injured kin, forming a virtual fortress. They would not let any human get close enough to help. When the locals tried to help, the monkeys attacked them.

Judge Sagar G Patil, who lives right in front of the school, was moved by the animals’ plight. He immediately contacted the Forest department and the Town Municipal Council. Pourakarmika Jagadish, along with Forest department staff Naveen, Revanasiddaiah and Boregowda arrived at the spot and launched efforts to save the baby monkey.

 The frightened bunch of monkeys attacked the rescue team ferociously. They had to burst crackers to scare away the other monkeys.  By the time the rescue team reached the mother, she was dead.

The infant, unable to sever the umbilical cord, lay hugging the mother’s body. The Forest department staff soon cut the umbilical cord, washed the infant in warm water, fed it some milk and took it away swaddled in a clean cloth. The local residents then buried the dead mother.