It is known that the entry fee to the Nandankanan Zoo will be enhanced from March 1 for different category of visitors. The normal fee for adult visitors will be Rs25 instead of Rs20. Further, the teenagers between 3 years and 12years will pay Rs5 to Rs10 per head. It is agreed that the entry fee to this park has not been increased in last five years. It is also accepted that such type of action was necessitated for infrastructural development of the zoo by the State Government as additional funds are required for this.
In the last financial year, the number of visitors in the park was 29lakh and it is expected that it will be 30lakh in the current financial year. It is seen that more school and college going students with their parents and teachers are coming to the zoo from different parts of this State and from the whole country for knowing biodiversities of the nature.
From this point of view Nandankanan is not a zoo for raising finance, but for spreading education among the children and youngsters. So, the fee hike is not justified. For, this will discourage visitors who come to the park for education and research.
One of the key factors in forest policy is research. Transfer of technology and database survey are emphasized through research monitoring and other scientific measures to improve the forestry sector. Nandankanan zoological park is a perfect place for carrying out such research on flora and fauna. It should not be affected for the sake of raising revenue.
When this park was started during 1961/62 with the founder employees of Forest Department, the aim was to create an international institution on tropical flora and fauna to spread forestry sector education especially within the youngsters. These ideas are now diluted.
The total area of the institutional park is 14.16 square km, which includes the Nandankanan sanctuary, the botanical garden and a major wetland. There is no doubt the capacity of the zoo cum park needs to be expanded, but the managers of the zoo have contributed towards floral and faunal research. Now varieties of mammals like carnivores, herbivores, insectivores and omnivores including reptiles, amphibians, rodents and different kinds of birds are maintained in the sanctuary, with residential animals, birds and reptiles. The residential animals are the indicators of healthy environment. Similarly the infrastructural development is a part of the habitat management. As sources reveal every year lakhs and lakhs of rupees are spent in this zoological park, apart from the feeding of the animals, for infrastructural development. It is also certain that, some recurring expenditures are needed for maintenance of this park. But it does not mean that the entire annual expenditure of the zoo has to be recovered from the visitors on the way of entry and other fees. It is not an ethical policy of management of a cultural institution like Nandankanan where the ecological education is of foremost importance. Our national and State Governments are providing various types of subsidies and subsidized articles to the school and college children for promoting education, but the Nandankanan authorities seem to have planned to earn money by passing on the burden to the students and researchers who constitute a major chunk of the visitors’ population of the zoo.
The authorities of Nandanankanan, on the contrary, should apprise the Government to issue free entry passes to the students and their guardians for promoting education on Nandankanan botanical garden and captive animal and bird populace. It is very often complained that major amounts of entry fees of the zoological park are swallowed by the staff. Such types of complaints will be no more if children are allowed free passes. When the Government of Odisha is spending crores of rupees to provide mid- day meals in primary educational institutions to promote education, there is no justification behind hiking the fees for the same children in the zoo.
Another setback of the institution is no literature or leaflets on every species of animals, birds, reptiles, amphibians are maintained in this institution. So far there are only some brochures in local language for the purpose of spreading education among the students, and among the people of Odisha. However, attempts should be made to publish literature on flora and fauna of the park in English for non-Odias and foreigners.
When we claim that the zoo has achieved international standard to attract tourism and education, we have done nothing on this line to excite the interest of foreigners and the people of our nation and continent on the park.
Not only the Nandankanan zoo, all the zoological parks and sanctuaries should have provisions to allow the students and their guardians and teachers to enter free of cost. Similarly the guides should be technically sound to take up classes for the students and visitors to the ecological hubs of the State.
The writer has long experience on these institutions and knows personally the failure and success of park management. As it is seen, the Nandankanan zoo is exclusively managed by the staff members of the Forest Department, who have monopolized the management process. So people’s involvement in the park is a must to break the monopoly of self centric employees of animal management system. The public involvement will bring success to this zoological unit.
As regards infrastructural development, the process is going on in the park without any proper scheme of operation. All the forest officers have been imparted very rudimentary training on civil works only, and their efficiency on civil and constructional engineering is questionable. But lakhs of rupees are spent specially in constructional works in the park on the ground of infrastructural developments. How far it is justifiable is known to the authorities of this zoo. As the park needs lots of money for infrastructural growth, it has been forced to hike fees.
The whole annual plans and programmes, including the budgeted expenditures and revenue, of the park should be available in the website. Transparency is always welcomed for better and efficient management of a public institution. Similarly the service particulars of zoo managers should be available in the | websites for public knowledge.
(The writer is a former senior forest officer and an environmentalist. Tel no 9937460649)