Why in News:

• The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) will have non-human beneficiaries — the rare golden langur (Trachypithecus geei) in a reserve forest in western Assam’s Bongaigaon district.

Background:

• The district authorities launched a ₹27.24-lakh project under the MGNREGA to plant guava, mango, blackberry and other fruit trees to ensure that the resident golden langurs of the 17 sq.km.
• Kakoijana Reserve Forest do not have to risk their lives to find food.
• Several golden langurs have died due to electrocution and in road accidents while looking for food beyond the reserve forests.

Golden Langur:

• Assam announced the success of the Golden Langur Conservation Breeding Program in the State.
• Gee’s golden langur is a leaf-eating monkey found only in north-eastern India and Bhutan.
• It is currently marked endangered in the IUCN list.
• It inhabits evergreen and deciduous tropical forests.
• Like most fruit eating primates, they play a vital role in forest repopulation i.e via seed dispersal, seed predation, and pollination.