Wayanad, November 15: With municipal elections in Wayanad around the corner, the Harithagiri Residents Association of Kalpetta Municipality, on Sunday, decided that they will only vote for the party that comes up with a permanent solution to the problems posed by monkeys in the municipality. Monkeys have created a huge menace for the people living in Kalpetta Municipality.

A local in Kalpetta said: "I am a 62-year-old woman. I was regularly casting my vote for all these years. But this time, I have decided to vote only if a candidate assures me that the problems created by monkeys will be solved. Monkeys of this area remove the tiles from the rooftop of my house, enter my kitchen and steal all food. Fearing them, my family has started keeping cooked food in the bedroom."

She further complains that till date, none of the governing bodies has taken any concrete action against the monkey problem. The Harithagiri Residents Association has put up banners right in front of the posters of political parties thereby urging the candidates to address the problem faced by monkey menace in order to win votes.

Rakesh, the postman who delivers letters to the houses in the region, said that, daily, he has to pass through monkeys on his way. Many times, the monkeys had indulged in a direct attack. "Every time I go to a house, someone will have to drive away from the monkeys. People are really fed up with the monkeys in the region.", he added.