SCMP Internet Edition

Friday July 24 1998
South Asia Today
Mythical god Hanuman ensures monkey business stays in hospitals

INDIA by Rahul Bedi
For three decades, monkeys have held sway in several hospitals in New Delhi, terrorising doctors and patients and stealing medicines.
At the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, the country's flagship hospital, windows have been barred against the gangs of monkeys, descendants of escapees from the institute's laboratories over 25 years ago. But it is not uncommon for the apes to chase nurses and patients down the huge institute's corridors.
Doctors say years of familiarity have bred a playful ingenuity in the monkeys. Patients have woken from anaesthesia to be greeted by a grinning red-bottomed monkey sharing their bed or casually playing with their glucose or blood transfusion drips.
Scores of monkey-bite victims have had to be treated with anti-rabies vaccines.
However, attempts to deal with the menace have been stymied by Hindus who associate the pests with Hanuman, the mythical monkey god. Protests stopped efforts to shoot the monkeys in the 1980s, and patients' relatives now feed them, hoping Hanuman will speed recovery.

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	Friday July 24 1998 South Asia Today Mythical god Hanuman ensures monkey business stays in hospitals INDIA by Rahul Bedi For three decades, monkeys have held sway in several hospitals in New Delhi, terrorising doctors and patients and stealing medicines. At the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, the country's flagship hospital, windows have been barred against the gangs of monkeys, descendants of escapees from the institute's laboratories over 25 years ago. But it is not uncommon for the apes to chase nurses and patients down the huge institute's corridors. Doctors say years of familiarity have bred a playful ingenuity in the monkeys. Patients have woken from anaesthesia to be greeted by a grinning red-bottomed monkey sharing their bed or casually playing with their glucose or blood transfusion drips. Scores of monkey-bite victims have had to be treated with anti-rabies vaccines. However, attempts to deal with the menace have been stymied by Hindus who associate the pests with Hanuman, the mythical monkey god. Protests stopped efforts to shoot the monkeys in the 1980s, and patients' relatives now feed them, hoping Hanuman will speed recovery. Back To Top


	Front Page \| Hong Kong \| China \| Asia \| World \| Business Markets \| Focus \| Sport \| Property \| Technology \| Index [SCMP Home] [Classified Post] [Spice] [1997] [Internet Business Centre] [SCMP Global Investor] [Your Money] SCMP Contact Information \| Letters To The Editor Copyright ©1998 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All Rights Reserved.