Bhagwan Birsa Munda Biological Park in Ranchi’s Ormanjhi Block is gearing up to welcome four new members to the zoo family soon. The two pairs of Zebras have been booked by the Birsa Zoo and they are not coming in from Africa, but Israel’s Zoological Centres. This is going to be the first sighting of Zebras in the city, which has never hosted the species in the past. The two pairs—two male and two female are expected to arrive in Ranchi anywhere between February and May 2016.
“There was a proposal for bringing in Zebras from abroad for the past one year or so, and finally, we are sending the signed agreement to the Zoological Centre in Tel Aviv today. Whenever any zoo in India has to purchase animals from abroad, gets tied up in several paper works. We need the state government, the Centre and the Director General of Foreign Trade’s (DGFT) approval for the completion of the entire process. We have already been given a go-ahead by the state and the Centre and the contract is ready, too. After the agreement is signed by Israel, we will send the same for DGFT’s approval,” said AK Patra, Director, Birsa Zoo.
Patra explained the time-taking process and the different approvals required in such cases wherein animals are brought in from foreign countries. “We need to have import license, clearance from the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests, which has already been received. We also need to get permission from Central Zoo Authority and Custom Clearance too. The maximum time goes in seeking approval from the DGFT, which will take about three to six months. Then, we should have the African species in the zoo,” said Patra.
The Director mentioned that the animals are being brought in from Tel Aviv for free of cost and that the Zoo will only bear the transportation cost. “The four Zebras will be flown in a special flight from Tel Aviv to Mumbai. Then, after the checkup, they will be put in the parcel van in a train from lokmanya Tilak Terminus (lTT) and brought to Ranchi. The cost only includes the transportation and the insurance for the animals,” added Patra.
Moreover, the Zoo needs to make arrangement for the new members and soon there will be Zebra enclosures formed. The Zoo Director also added that though the Zoo is fit to host the African equids, they will soon need to make some changes to better accommodate them.
