In the past, monkeys were a part of all rituals performed in the village.
Aurangabad:
At a time when land disputes are common among people, monkeys in a village in Maharashtra’s Osmanabad district have been given the rare honor of having 32 acres of land registered in their names.
In Osmanabad’s Upla village, people pay a lot of respect to the Simian residents whenever they approach the door and sometimes even at weddings.
The land records found with Upala Gram Panchayat clearly mention that 32 acres of land is in the name of all the monkeys living in the village.
The village’s sarpanch (pramukh) Bappa Padwal told PTI, “The documents clearly state that the land belongs to the monkeys, but it is not known who made this provision for the animals and when.
He said that in the past, monkeys were a part of all rituals performed in the village.
Padwal said the village is now home to around 100 monkeys, and their numbers have dwindled over the years as the animals do not stay in one place for long.
He said that the forest department has done plantation work on the land and there was also an abandoned house on the plot, which has now collapsed.
The sarpanch said, “Earlier, whenever marriages took place in the village, monkeys were first given gifts and only then the ceremony would begin. Now not everyone follows this custom.”
The villagers also feed the monkeys whenever they come to their doorstep. He said that no one forbids him to eat.
(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)