Mumbai zoo seeks pair of Asiatic lions from Gujarat

Mumbai, Jan 21 (PTI) Authorities of the zoo in Mumbai have written to the forest department in neighbouring Gujarat, seeking a pair of Asiatic lions, officials said.

The Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Botanical Gardens and Zoo, popularly known as Ranibaug, located at Byculla, has once again started taking efforts to fill the cage of lions that has been lying vacant since 2014, they said.

As part of it, the zoo authorities recently wrote a letter to the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) in Gujarat, requesting for a pair of Asiatic lions, although they currently do not have any animals to offer in exchange, they said.

"The cage reserved for lions at the Ranibaug has been empty since Jimmy, an African-Asiatic hybrid lioness, died in 2014. Since then, the civic-run zoo has been trying to bring lions. As part of it, we have written to PCCF of Gujarat about a month back, but haven't received any reply yet," a senior official said.

Another official said that in the past also the zoo authorities had tried to procure lions from the Sakkarbaug Zoological Park in Gujarat's Junagadh, but the efforts did not bear any fruit.

"At present, we don't have any animals to exchange barring Penguins, but other zoos cannot afford the high infrastructure and maintenance cost required to keep them," a zoo official said.

Earlier this month, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis visited the Byculla zoo. When he was apprised of the efforts to get a pair of Asiatic lions from Gujarat, he assured to speak to his counterpart in the neighbouring state, he said.

Ranibaug is one of the famous tourist spots in the city. Annually lakhs of tourists visit the zoo that is rich in flora and fauna. Humboldt Penguins and tigers are one of the main tourist attractions. PTI KK NP