The Hindu
The centre currently houses 11 lions, including five females, and five tigers, including one male. Photo: G. Krishnaswamy
The Hindu
The centre currently houses 11 lions, including five females, and five tigers, including one male. Photo: G. Krishnaswamy
Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre at zoo offers space and a pollution-free habitat
It often begins with just a roar. Soon, a chorus of
fearsome noises reverberates across the 10-acre stretch of land in one
corner of Vandalur Zoo. Welcome to the 14-year-old Rescue and
Rehabilitation Centre, an arm of the Vandalur zoo. The facility was
created to rescue lions and tigers from circuses and rehabilitate them.
The
centre has its origin in an order issued in 1998 by the Union
Government, banning animals such as elephants, tigers, leopards, sloth
bears and monkeys from performing in circuses. Following the order, the
Ministry of Environment and Forests identified five places across the
country to set up rehabilitation centres. One among them was Vandalur.
The
centre was inaugurated in 2000 and has a capacity to accommodate 40
lions and 20 tigers. However, the centre now has only 11 lions,
including five females, and five tigers, including one male. The animals
are healthy, as is evident from their shiny skins and the bright
stripes on the tigers.
K.S.S.V.P. Reddy, additional
principal chief conservator of forests and zoo director, said the
rehabilitation has helped these flagship species to have an extended
lifespan. More than the rehabilitation, it is the space and a
pollution-free atmosphere that has really provided them a chance to
spend the rest of their lives peacefully and happily, he said.
The
rescued animals’ day begins with their release into the paddock area,
which is just like a forest that has been fenced. They spend at least
five hours in the open after which seven kg of beef with 150 g of liver
are provided to them in the evening. Once the feed is provided, the
animals are not allowed out of their enclosures. Boneless meat is
provided for the animals that have lost their teeth. Every Tuesday, the
animals are not fed, he said.
Not many people are
aware of this centre as it is not open to visitors to the zoo, said
Wildlife authorities. The facility could be used as an ‘Off Site
Breeding Centre’ for tigers and lions at a later stage, they added.
No comments:
Post a Comment