Fifty per cent of the revenue earned in the Dehradun zoo will be spent on the welfare of the animals housed in the zoo, said the Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat. He said this at the inauguration of aquariums and a three-dimensional theatre hall at the zoo here on Thursday. It should be mentioned here that in the past about 20 per cent of the zoo’s revenue used to be put to use for the welfare of the animals and birds of the zoo.
Expressing his views on the occasion, the Chief Minister appreciated the manner in which the Dehradun zoo had been developed. This will certainly increase the number of tourists visiting the zoo, he said. The State forest and wildlife minister Harak Singh Rawat, MlAs Ganesh Joshi and Umesh Sharma ‘Kau’ along with senior departmental officials were also present on the occasion.
The Dehradun divisional forest officer Prasanna Kumar Patro informed The Pioneer that the aquarium section inaugurated by the Chief Minister covers a total area of 5,000 square feet. The aquarium section houses a total of 45 species of fish including the piranha, arowana, fresh water sting ray and the alligator gar among many others. The aquarium section has 35 display units which have fauna planted within to provide a setting similar to the natural habitat of the fishes therein. Five marine aquarium units are also expected to be ready in about a fortnight at the zoo, added the DFO.
It is pertinent to mention here that the Dehradun zoo has a total of about 300 birds and animals apart from the aquatic fauna opened for display by the Chief Minister. The zoo has leopards, eagles, owls and different types of deer including 80 spotted deer among other species. Visited by a considerable number of people, the aquarium section and three-dimensional theatre inaugurated on Thursday are expected to further increase visitor numbers and the revenue generated by the zoo.