The municipality in the Muang district of Lop Buri intends to request 26 million baht from the government to enhance the local monkey zoo, which currently holds aggressive alpha macaques that have been captured. Mayor Chamroen Salacheep is leading this effort.
Chamroen mentioned that he is uncertain about the approval of the request and that the municipality has allocated just over one million baht of its own funds to improve the shelter in Pho Khao Ton sub-district. The construction of the shelter started a few years ago but was left unfinished due to insufficient funding.
After the responsibility for monitoring the incomplete facility was shifted from the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation to the municipality, he emphasized the need for maintenance to enhance the facility. This includes the creation of separate cages for monkeys captured in different areas to prevent conflicts among them.
The mayor stated that the current shelter can only house 800 monkeys, while there are an estimated 2,000 residing in the old town area.
A new phase of the relocation plan commenced on Monday, with a focus on the monkeys seeking refuge at the abandoned Lop Buri Asia Hotel, Manohra market, and the Chayo Wanich store.
According to the mayor, a memorandum of understanding was signed in February between the National Park Department and the municipality to expedite the relocation plan. The department is providing equipment and manpower support for this purpose.
Chamroen expressed that there are conflicting views about the decision to limit feeding of the monkeys. One group of residents believes that unrestricted feeding will spoil the monkeys and lead to a population increase, while another group argues that restricted feeding will leave them hungry and more aggressive.
He suggested that a viable alternative is to capture the aggressive members of the troop and relocate them.
