BHUBANESWAR: Amid continuing Covid-19 restrictions, the Nandankanan Zoological Park has decided to introduce virtual tour of the zoo soon. The tour will provide a 360 degree view of all the zoo enclosures and exhibits through a dedicated web link that will be launched on or before it’s foundation day on December 29.
It will be a simulation of the zoological park comprising the animals, botanical garden and Kanjia lake, combining a sequence of videos and still images. However, it is not clear if the zoo authorities have planned use of other multimedia elements such as sound effects and narration.
Although the virtual tour was planned two months back, it could not be implemented due to Covid restrictions. “As the zoo remained closed since March third week due to Covid outbreak, shooting of videos was delayed”, said a senior official, adding the link of the tour will be available on the zoo website.
Currently, virtual tour is being provided by zoos at Alipore, Chhatbir, Chennai and Lucknow.
Along with the virtual tour, the revamped toy train will also be launched on the foundation day. The restoration work is being carried out by a private firm at the cost of `4.75 crore. Work on the toy train was affected due to cyclone Fani last year and further delayed because of the Covid outbreak.