Lucknow Railway Station Hires a Monkey-Man to Control Local Monkeys: Sometimes Truth Really is Stranger Than Fiction

When I was a child, my father was stationed at the US Embassy in New Delhi, India, where we lived for three years. I have always been fascinated with India, so after I graduated from college and spent several years working in sales, I went back to India for a three-week tour. India is home to many strange things: snake charmers, sword-swallowers, wandering holy men, maimed beggars, and other oddities that can be a little overwhelming to Westerners.

However, my scariest moment came when I was opening a package of film to put in my camera, and a monkey attacked me, thinking the rattling sound was food. I wasn't injured except for a few small scrapes, as the monkey climbed me all the way to the top of my head where he grabbed the film out of my hand and took off. Monkeys are a problem in many parts of India; they are no longer afraid of humans, because they have learned that where humans are, there is also food.

At the Lucknow railway station in Charbagh, the large monkey population had become such a nuisance that railway officials were forced to take drastic measures to protect their passengers and their property. Lucknow is the capital city of Uttar Pradesh, the most populous state of India, and the Lucknow railway station was reportedly home to thousands of pesky monkeys which roamed the large facility at will, damaging the facility, ripping train seats, and stealing food from the passengers.

In an effort to scare off the monkey marauders, desperate officials made the unlikeliest of decisions and hired -- a monkey-man. Among India's many strange things, the monkey-man of Lucknow rates high on my list. Dressed as a monkey, Acchan Miyan now prowls the railway station on all fours, tail high in the air, scaring the other simians away. Miyan is paid a regular salary by the railway of 300 to 400 rupees a day ($7 - $10 a day, depending on the exchange rate). The unusual move appears to be paying off as the monkeys are now are no longer attacking unsuspecting rail commuters.