The State’s third tiger and lion safari will soon open near Hampi in Ballari district with the work on establishing the facility nearing completion.
The first such safari to open in the State was at Bannerghatta Biological Park. It was followed by Tyavarekoppa in Shivamogga district.
With Hampi being a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one among the country’s top tourist destinations, the Zoo Authority of Karnataka (ZAK), Mysuru, the caretaker of zoos in the State, came up with the idea of establishing a new zoo and carnivore and herbivore safari closer to Hampi.
Atal Bihari Vajpayee Zoological Park and the herbivore safari were launched in November 2017 at Kamalapura in Bilikal West Reserve Forest area, about 10 km from Hampi. The zoo and safari have been developed in an area of 141 hectares. The zoo has come up on a 40-hectare space and the herbivore safari on about 30 acres. The remaining portion of land had been reserved for a tiger and lion safari, which is now gearing up for the launch.
The children’s park and mini zoo at Ballari were closed with the opening of Atal Bihari Vajpayee Zoological Park, and the animals from Ballari zoo were shifted to the new zoo. Surplus herbivorous animals from other zoos and also from Ballari mini zoo were shifted to the herbivore safari after the CZA approved the master plan and animal collection plan. Animals such as spotted deer, sambar, barking deer and others are there.
ZAK started the work on the tiger safari after the CZA approved the master plan. ZAK member secretary and Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests B.P. Ravi told The Hindu that the work on tiger and lion safari was nearing completion and there were plans to launch the new facility in November. Tigers and lions for the new safari will be donated from Mysuru Zoo and Bannerghatta Park respectively and the CZA’s nod was awaited to start the shifting process.
The new safaris were expected to serve as conservation education centres on wildlife as Hampi gets lakhs of tourists every year and ZAK hopes that the tourists include the new zoo and the safari in their Hampi itinerary.