Indian police have found a girl who was living in the forest with a troop of monkeys.
The girl, believed to be around 8 years old, was emaciated, wearing no clothes and unable to speak when she was discovered by a few woodcutters in January, The Times of India reported.
The girl couldn’t understand any language and behaved like an animal as she used her arms and legs to walk. She was taken to a hospital in Bahraich, a town in Uttar Pradesh state in northern India.
Chief medical superintendent of the government-run hospital DK Singh said the girl ate food off the floor with her mouth, however, after treatment, she’s begun eating with her hands and has shown some improvement.
“She’s still not able to speak, but understands whatever you tell her and even smiles,” Singh said.
Police officer Dinesh Tripathi said he was alerted by woodcutters who had spotted the girl roaming around with monkeys. “They said the girl was naked and was very comfortable in the company of monkeys. When they tried to rescue the girl, they were chased away by the monkeys,” the officer said.
The girl was later rescued by an officer deployed in Katarniya Ghat forest range. “When he called the girl, the monkeys attacked him but he was able to rescue the girl. He sped away with her in his police car while the monkeys gave chase,” Tripathi said.
Police are trying to find out how the girl started living in the forest and who her parents were. She will be sent to the juveniles’ shelter home until she has been identified, police said.
This article originally appeared on the Times of India.
