Months after the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) blamed the Centre for not acting against those responsible for various irregularities, including allegations of mismanagement in recording deaths of wild animals and their illegal procurement in Delhi Zoo, the Union Environment Ministry has transferred the latter’s administrative control to the statutory authority engaged in regulating zoos across the country.
Spread over 176 acres, Delhi Zoo is the only zoo in the country to be administered directly by the Ministry — the others being under the supervision of the CZA.
Justifying the move, a senior Environment Ministry official said transfer was aimed at streamlining the functioning of Delhi Zoo.
Delhi Zoo from time to time had been in the news for all the wrong reasons. In January 8, 2019, in an explosive affidavit filed before the Delhi High Court, a panel led by then CZA member secretary DN Singh (who is retired now), pointed out several irregularities such as fudging of animal death data, not carrying post-mortem in case of unnatural animal death, concealing of animal deaths, and mysterious nature of deaths among others. The panel had sought action against the erring officials.
The panel was constituted in 2017 at the behest of the Ministry following above mentioned string of allegations over a prolonged period of time. Between 2016 and 2017, Delhi Zoo reportedly lost over 320 animals.
The affidavit had also alleged that no corrective action appears to have been taken by the Environment Ministry against those responsible for irregularities observed in Delhi Zoo.
The Ministry’s move to transfer the administrative control to the CZA has raised many eyebrows with the sources saying there is more than what meets the eye.
“Instead of taking action against the erring officials as pointed out by the panel last year, the Ministry has passed the buck on the CZA. If they were really serious about the welfare of the animals of Delhi Zoo, they could have acted on the panel’s recommendations and taken action against those responsible about the mismanagement of Delhi Zoo as highlighted by the panel.”
“The recent happenings in Delhi Zoo, as has come to the knowledge of the CZA, is shocking and it is not imaginable and acceptable in any zoo in the country, not to think of it in wild dream, also it should be happening in the national zoo of the country, which is identified as national centre of excellence,” the CZA had said in the affidavit.
The affidavit was filed in response to a PIL moved by activist Ajay Dubey, who had sought a probe either by the CBI or any other competent agency on illegalities in Delhi Zoo pointed out by him. Acting on Dubey’s complaint, the Ministry had in August 2017 constituted DN Singh-led committee to look into the matter.
The CZA submitted that the probe panel did not get the cooperation from the zoo officers and employees. Somehow, the enquiry was conducted and its findings were submitted to the Ministry in April last year, the affidavit said.
The enquiry found that monitor lizards were illegally caught (from outside) and released in the cell of the animal (inside the zoo). “Based on the documentary evidence, it has been found that the death of many animals in the zoo was suppressed by the authorities. The dead animals have been subsequently replaced with illegally captured animals,” it said.
It said eight tortoises (unidentified species) and three red sand boa snakes were missing from the zoo while the records pertaining to captive animals of the zoo have been manipulated.
The CZA based on records available and complaints filed time to time, observed irregularities in the NZP, it said.
The same were brought to the knowledge of the authorities in the Ministry through series of letters,” the affidavit said. The CZA conveyed these findings to the Ministry for appropriate action.
“However, no corrective action appears to be taken against the responsible for irregularities observed in the National Zoological Park,” it said, adding that the court may pass further orders as it may seem fit in the given circumstances of the case.
The habitats of wildlife are under severe pressure and therefore the zoos have not only to sustain their own populations but also augment the depleting populations of endangered species in the wild, said the CZA suggesting that the zoos need to do more to add to wildlife.
However, while the matter is under the legal scanner, the Ministry through a letter on June 18, 2019 gone forward to shift the NZP’s administrative control to the CZA. The decision followed recommendations “from a high level panel set up by the Ministry to look into the issues afflicting the Delhi Zoo.”
“We have received the letter and we will put it before a technical committee in the next 15 days. It will be taken up in a board meeting of the CZA which will be chaired by Minister (Union Environment Minister) towards this month-end, CZA Member Secretary Anup Nayak said.