Byculla Zoo revamp

The BMC’s plan to revamp the Jijamata Udyan at Byculla will finally take shape as the Central Zoo Authority of India (CZA) recently approved the amended final master layout plan for the purpose.
Animal lovers can look forward to exotic species such as the jaguar, zebra, Humboldt penguin, exotic marine fishes, tiger, Asiatic lion, wild dog, bison and deer at the new-improved zoo. Work on the revamp will start in September 2013 and is slated to be tied up by March 2015.
The BMC has worked on a theme—‘Living Together’— for the zoo.
If the civic body is to be believed, no animal will be neglected in the refurbished zoo.
Public amenities such as car parking, resting places, drinking water fountains, toilets and rain shelters will be provided too.
The project cost has been pegged at Rs 150 crore. This will include ongoing project works such as construction of an interpretation centre (where children will be able to participate in educational activities for wildlife conservation), a zoo hospital, an entrance plaza, heritage restoration and a boundary wall. All the existing trees will be conserved and protected. A total of 24 enclosures will be constructed for animals and birds.
Animals that are not included in the approved animal collection plan such as the Himalayan black bear, rhesus and bonnet monkeys, Indian one-horned rhinoceros and elephants will be shifted to other zoos or released in the wild in consultation with Central Zoo Authority, New Delhi. Or else, they may be housed in the zoo premises in the proposed quarantine area.
Exotic animals will be exhibited in the seven-acre Mafatlal Mill area that adjoins the eastern side of the zoo.