THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The long-pending proposal to shift the 170-year-old Thiruvananthapuram Zoo out of the city centre has resurfaced with Chief Minister V D Satheesan calling for the facility to be relocated to a more spacious, forest-adjacent setting.
Satheesan, while addressing the inaugural event of the round table conference here, argued that keeping wild animals in a congested urban environment raises concerns over animal welfare and suggested locations such as Neyyar or Palode, where a modern zoo could be set up. However, the suggestion triggered a debate over whether relocation is necessary when the existing zoo has been undergoing modernisation and continues to attract large crowds.
The zoo, established in 1859, currently occupies about 55 acres and is officially described as one of the country’s oldest zoos. A senior official of the Department of Museum and Zoos said there are currently more than 1,000 animals belonging to 89 species at the zoo. The official said the facility has 28 open enclosures and 43 other enclosures, all established in accordance with the CZA’s guidelines and the zoo’s master plan.
“We have very proper animal care here. We have a good team of doctors. The curatorial staff is very efficient. The keepers are also very dedicated. We haven’t felt any such difficulty so far,” said the official. Many feel that since the zoo is located in the middle of the city, visitors are growing. During the week-long Onam celebrations, the zoo recorded nearly 30 lakh visitors, which is around 9 lakh more visitors compared to last year during the same period.
Renjan Mathew Varghese, state head of WWF-India said, “Compared with the zoos I have visited in many places, the Thiruvananthapuram Zoo is far, far better. It is in very good condition. The only thing is that the number of animals has come down,” he said.
“The zoo has a huge educational value for the public. The reason so many people visit it is because it is located in the middle of the city. If we move it somewhere far away perhaps only one-third of the visitors will come,” he said.
Moreover, the zoo functions as a green lung for the city and supports a wider urban ecosystem. It has already been documented that the natural lake and wooded landscape support a free-roaming bird population, including migratory birds, besides butterflies, dragonflies, beetles, spiders and other fauna. A former zoo official also raised concern on the practicality of relocation, pointing out that establishing a new zoo would require a new location, a master plan, CZA approval, professional zoo design and substantial funding before animals could be shifted.
Environmentalist and Planning Board member Sridhar Radhakrishnan said that the proposal by the CM was purely an observation regarding the ethical treatment of caged animals. “Even if a proposal comes in the future, the government has no plan to clear or alter the space. The existing green ecosystem and biodiversity at the zoo will remain entirely intact as a recreational public space for citizens,” he said.
