Kolkata: Darjeeling's Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park bagged the top position among the zoos in the country among about 150 zoos across the country. The zoological park officials and staff are excited about winning the title. The Darjeeling Zoo was followed by Chennai Zoo and Mysore Zoo. Kolkata's Alipore Zoo grabbed fourth place.
Recently, a conference of the directors of all zoos and safari parks in the country was organised in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, on September 10. The Central Zoo Authority published the list after the conference. The attractions of Padmaja Naidu Zoo are animals like red panda, Himalayan Black Bear, snow leopard, goral, Himalayan tar, blue deer, Tibetan wolf.
Besides the Topkedara Breeding Centre, Darjeeling Zoo has also taken part in initiatives like the red panda augmentation programme. The zoo attracts a large number of tourists from other states and foreign countries.
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"We are very happy to be ranked first. This achievement goes to all the zoo staff. The higher authorities always cooperate with us. That makes our work more convenient," Darjeeling Zoo Director Basbraj Holiyachi said. According to the Central Zoo Authority, Darjeeling Zoo has been the best among 130 large and medium zoos across the country.
Darjeeling Zoo scored 83 per cent marks to rank first. The results are prepared by the statutory body of the Central Zoo Authority which is under the Ministry of Environment and Forests of the Union Government.
In 1975, Indira Gandhi named the zoo in memory of the then Governor Padmaja Naidu. The Darjeeling Zoo was inaugurated by India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. Naidu started the conservation of snow leopards in 1983, and red pandas in 1986 at the zoo. After that, the red panda moved to different zoos in the country.
