In Telangana, farmer disguises himself as bear to safeguard his crops from monkeys

Grazing trips by monkeys or wandering livestock can render months of labour put into harvesting crops meaningless. While farmers across India employ a slew of techniques including scarecrows to preserve their crops, a Telangana farmer named Bhaskar Reddy went a step further and disguised himself as a sloth bear to protect his produce.

In one of the amusing events that transpired in Siddipet’s Koheda area of Hyderabad, a farmer adopted a unique method to tackle the menace of wild boars and monkeys who kept damaging his crops even before they were harvested. According to news agency ANI, Reddy adopted this unique method to save his paddy field from the wild animals in the nearby areas. In a bid to preserve his produce, Reddy disguised himself as a sloth bear to ward off intruding animals. 

Taking to the fields, Reddy and his son took turns wearing the outfit. Speaking to ANI, Reddy said that he is now paying someone to come work for them. He also stated that he has hired a person now, whom he pays Rs 500 each day. He added, "I've hired a worker for Rs 500 each day to wear the costume and walk around the land to keep the animals away."

Paid 10 thousand to customise sloth bear

According to ANI, Reddy paid Rs 10,000 for the customised sloth bear attire from a costume supply merchant in Hyderabad who manufactures clothes for theatre groups. According to reports, he claimed that because the garment is made of Rexine, it is hot and uncomfortable to wear in the summer heat, but that it is effective at keeping animals at bay.

Farmers all around India frame novel solutions to their concerns. Sushil Agarwal of the Mayurbhanj district of Odisha built a solar-powered four-wheeler at his home last year to avoid paying high gasoline expenses.

Recently, Jaipal Reddy, a Telangana farmer who cultivates paddy on his four acres of land in Sircilla, was very upset about his crops getting destroyed by monkeys until he came across a unique idea to solve his concern. Jaipal paid Rs 14,000 for a life-like toy tiger, which he placed in the centre of his farmland. His plan worked like magic, and the monkeys stopped targeting his fruit and vegetables.