TISS is planning to train monkeys in coconut plucking to fill in for the manpower crunch in rural Kerala. Prachi Rege gives a low-down on the unique concept.
On a sunny day by the beach in Kerala, if you spot a monkey climbing a coconut tree, don’t dismiss it off as a routine experience. The feisty primate may be a professional, trained to pluck coconuts for his living. S/he may be in business.
Amusing as it may sound, this will soon be a reality. The Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) is exploring the possibility of starting a unique course to train monkeys in plucking coconuts. “We have submitted a project proposal regarding this to the Kerala government and are awaiting their clearance,” says S Parasuraman, director, TISS. Presently the TISS boss is busy convincing the Kerala Government, Association of Coconut Planters, and also animal rights activists about the efficacy of this project.
The course will begin in Kerala for various reasons. “A significant area in Kerala is under coconut cultivation and there is a serious crunch of coconut pluckers,” says Parasuraman. According to the data gleaned from Coconut Development Board in Kochi, Kerala has more than 15-million coconut trees and requires at least 30 to 40, 000 climbers to pick the fruit. Labour is scarce as youngsters have migrated either to metros or Gulf countries for better prospects. Of the remainder, few are interested in earning a livelihood out of nut plucking because of low pay and inherent risk.
Parasuraman says that rice farming in Kerala dwindled for the very reason. The coconut business should not meet with the same fate. “Today the state imports rice as rubber plantation has replaced rice cultivation,” he explains. Parasuraman first encountered the ‘monkey business’ in Bangkok, “where they train monkeys to do the kind of physical labour that humans do.” Coconut plucking is predominantly a male oriented job. One needs to be swift and strong to climb and descend trees. “Monkeys portray similar strength as humans and also their hands are strong and well equipped to pluck and hold a coconut,” explains Parasuraman. While a man is able to climb 50 trees in a day taking approximately 10 minutes per tree, a trained monkey has ten times the capacity. Parasuraman is yet to decide on which species of monkey will make it to the classroom.
“We will give the certificate to a farmer who employs the trained monkey,” he says. While nothing has been decided about the remuneration, it goes without saying that the new owner will have to take good care of the animal. So the next time you head out to any part of Kerala, do pay a visit to a “coconut coaching class” and meet the new age professional.
No monkey business this...
1. In Thailand, the coconut course is of three months duration and may extend to six months, depending upon a monkey’s performance
2. Each monkey learns the following skills:
How to spin a coconut off of the stem
How to fetch the fallen coconuts
How to load and unload coconuts into a vehicle
How to hand a worker coconuts to be peeled from their outer husks
How to load the peeled coconuts into a bag two at a time, and even how to help coil its own rope
3. Each monkey can pick about 700 to 1,000 coconuts a day. The skills save the owner considerable time and labour
Talking parrots, any takers?
TISS is working on another interesting project. It will teach parrots to talk because talking parrots make great companions. Kerala has a large population of aged people. With the youngsters migrating to the Gulf in search of greener pastures, there is no one left at home to even talk to the elderly. “Elderly people leading a lonely life need someone to talk to. Parrots can be their best friends in the house,” quips Parasuraman. Apart from keeping them company and talking to them, the chirpy bird will also remind its elderly owner about medicines, meals and his/ her tea time.
The senior citizen, who buys the talking parrot will get the certificate, says the TISS boss.
Training Steps
The animal is first disciplined and then taught commands
With a monkey, who is a copycat, you demonstrate coconut plucking; the learning is faster
With a parrot, which is good at repeating words, keep feeding it with appropriate words and sentences.
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