Hyderabad's 'Nehru Zoo' Celebrating 'Golden Jubilee' Year

By Arhaan Faraaz / Hyderabad

Fifty years and several thousand visitors later, the Nehru Zoological Park continues to be the most sought after tourist destination on the map of Hyderabad. Beating all heritage sites, museums and the ‘new-age’ resorts in the game of numbers, the city’s zoo, which boasts of an extraordinary assemblage of 1,600-odd animals and birds in near natural settings replete with greenery,has not only registered an exponential rise in footfalls but also witnessed its revenues grow manifold over the past five decades. 
The official Golden Jubilee celebrations at the 380-acre park near Bahadurpura, first set up with the help of a small collection belonging to the VII Nizam Mir Osman Ali Khan housed at the erstwhile Bagh-e-Aam (now Public Gardens), is set to kick-start on October 6. 
    
But while this piece of Hyderabad’s pride, visited by His Holiness The Dalai Lama and several former Presidents of India, has crossed many milestones and managed to enhance its ‘collection’ with the inclusion of animals such as cheetah, rhinos, giraffe and king cobra during this time, hasfailedtocheckone primary concern – pollution. 
    
Thanks to the Shamshabad airport, the road outside the zoohasbecomebusier anddirtier than ever before, with noise levels recorded in the ‘silence zone’ perpetually above permissible limits. Worse, the vehicular traffic count inside the premises continues to hover around 150 over weekends. While the current curator A Shankaran maintains that the number of vehicles entering the zoo has reduced by about 50% post a hikein theentry fee, officials feel it still isn’t a reason to celebrate. 
    
“People needtounderstand that they should utilize the battery-operated vehicles and bicycles inside the zoo. Other vehicles contribute heavily to air and noise pollution,” said an expert adding, “Pollution (noise and air) may not kill animals but will definitely lower their resistance levels.” 
    
Apart from battling the black fumes, observers also stress the need to enhance the watch-and-ward staff deployed at the zoo. They said stringent security is very important especially during the holiday rush to control unruly crowds. Vandalism, over speeding, driving in the wrong direction, feeding animals and throwing stones are common occurrences that are also risky for visitors, they said. 
    
But its many flaws notwithstanding, the glorious history of the park lives on. The giant tortoise that was a part of the Nizam’s collection is still housed at the zoo and happens to be the oldest animal on display. “Nehru zoo park was the firsttosetup a nocturnalhouse in India in 1987 and the model was later adopted by other zoos,” said M A Waheed, former zoo curator. It also happens to be the first to introduce the lion safari in 1974 and later add the tiger and bison safari. 
    
Even today, the zoo, besides having diversespecies,is a paradise for birdwatchers as nearly 175 bird species are found within its precincts, said Fareeda Tampal, state director, World Wildlife Fund. “It is also a centre for tiger, vulture and mouse deer breeding. While the vulture breeding programme is yet to show results, the mouse deer breeding has been a success,” she said. 
    
According to Shankaran, the statue of former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru will be inaugurated along with a golden jubilee pylon and three animal enclosures, as part of the golden jubilee celebrations.

Meanwhile, three animal enclosures were added on the occasion of the golden jubilee celebrations of the Nehru Zoological Park here on Sunday. A pair of squirrel monkeys, mute swans and black swans were the new attractions as Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy inaugurated these enclosures at a function to mark the 50th anniversary of the zoo. The CM also unveiled a statue of Jawaharlal Nehru and a commemorative pylon on the occasion. 

The zoo officials said that they plan to add a few more animals in the coming days. These include ringed tail lemurs, mandrill monkeys, gharials, cheetahs, rhea birds and an African lion from Saudi Arabia. Some of these animals have already arrived in the zoo, officials said.