Almost a year after it was shut, due to the COVID-19 lockdown, the Veermata Jijabai Bhosale (VJB) Udyan and Zoo, popularly known as Byculla zoo, is likely to open its door for visitors from February 15 under the state government’s Mission Begin Again.
According to zoo authorities, a proposal to reopen Byculla zoo from February 15, 2021 has been submitted to municipal commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal for approval. The zoo will be reopened post the approval.
As the gardens and zoo reopens, visitors for the first time will also get a glimpse of the two Royal Bengal tigers named Shakti and Karishma, who were brought from Siddharth Garden and Zoo in Maharashtra's Aurangabad city last February and kept in quarantine.
However, owing to the outbreak of bird flu, the enclosure of over 200 exotic birds will be kept shut and other enclosures like those of tigers, penguins and leopards will remain open for the general public as usual.
The popular tourist spot had closed gates on March 15 last year amidst the COVID-19 outbreak as large gatherings of people were being restricted. With this, the zoo has suffered a loss of INR 5 crores.
The operational timings of the zoo will remain the same between 9.30 am and 6 pm. The authorities at the zoo have created a specialized underwater viewing facility for visitors to get a close glimpse of the tigers.
The Byculla zoo received around 6,000 visitors during each weekday and over 8,000 visitors daily during weekends before the lockdown in March 2020.
A person wanting to visit the zoo has to shell out INR 50 currently per visit while children are charged INR 25.
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