Soon, 2 lions will arrive at Borivali's SGNP

Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), which is located in Borivali area of Mumbai, will soon get a pair of lions from Gujarat. A senior official of the Maharashtra Forest Department told Mid-Day, “The Maharashtra Forest Department has sent a proposal to the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) to get two lions from Gujarat in exchange for two tigers from SGNP. We hope that the CZA will soon approve the proposal, after which the animal exchange program will be completed.”

Sources told Mid-day that the process is likely to be approved soon and the captive lion pair could arrive at SGNP before monsoon.

Mid-Day had reported that in the first week of November 2023, the state government had sent a letter to the Member Secretary, CZA (New Delhi) regarding consent for the exchange of animals between Sanjay Gandhi Zoological Park and Sakkarbagh Zoo, Junagadh.

Sources in the state government told Mid-Day that a letter was sent once again to the CZA recently to expedite the process. Dr V Clement Bain, Additional Chief Conservator of Forests, Western Wildlife Zone (Mumbai) and SGNP Director and Chief Conservator of Forests G Mallikarjuna have been instrumental in the entire process.

In the last week of November 2022, a pair of lions arrived in SGNP from Junagadh. When the pair of lions were brought to SGNP, only one lion was left in the captive safari, but it died last week. In October 2022, Ravindra, SGNP's oldest lion, died of age-related ailments.

The lion pair brought to SGNP from Gujarat was 3 years old. The lions were initially kept in isolation and later released into an enclosed safari enclosure. Captive lion safaris were introduced at SGNP in 1975-76 and have become an important tourist attraction, helping to generate revenue for the park.

Safari lions are born from Asian and African lions rescued from circuses. A captive tiger and lion safari at SGNP, one of the most visited national parks in the country, was introduced in the 1990s and has since become an important tourist attraction. During the safari, visitors are transported in mini-buses to an area fenced on all four sides.