The COVID-19-induced lockdown has hit zoos in the State very hard, Deputy Conservator of Forests Ashok Patil said in Belagavi on Friday.
The nine zoos in the State had seen 65 lakh visitors last year. But this year only five lakh persons visited them till now. Even revenue of the Zoo Authority of Karnataka has suffered greatly. Last year, it earned ₹ 70 crore. “But this year, it has fallen drastically,” he said.
Zoos are independent bodies that are to be run locally. The State government does not provide running expenses. All the costs of feeding animals and managing personnel costs have to be met through ticket sales. But with falling revenues, it has become difficult to maintain staff and take care of the animals, providing them feed and fodder, Mr. Patil said.
Similarly, the Kittur Rani Channamma Mini Zoo in Belagavi has also suffered during the lockdown. It is in a prime location on the Pune-Bengaluru National Highway, nine kilometres away from the city.
It is being upgraded with a higher count of carnivorous and herbivorous animals. A tiger safari will be set up near the zoo. “Almost 70 % work has been completed and work is pending as we are hit by funds crunch,” he added.
“There is no government grants for this work and we need donations from the public,” he said.
To come out of this difficult situation, the government has chosen to seek citizens cooperation. The Zoo Authority of Karnataka and the government want to take up citizen engagement in an aggressive manner.
“To engage people in our efforts to save zoos, we have launched a mobile application. The scion of the erstwhile Mysuru royal family Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar and Forest Minister Anand Singh have launched this app,” he said.
The app will enable people to donate to zoos or adopt animals. Any amount above ₹ 50 can be donated to any zoo. Every one can download this and donate to the government. “Mr. Anand Singh has instructed us that we need citizens involvement in management of zoos during this time of crisis,” he added.
