The ‘grand old lady’ of Nehru Zoological Park had no clue where she was being taken to when Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Telangana) P. Raghuveer, and zoo curator N. Kshitija led her to a specially-erected dais.
It was indeed a special day for animal keepers and maintenance staff at the zoo as the jumbo, Rani, had her 80th birthday on Saturday, that called for celebrations. She was gifted to the zoo by the then Nizam of Hyderabad.
More visitors
The day also marked the 50th year of toy train being put into service, which continues to be one of the reasons for young and the old alike to visit the zoo. The decked up train was a big hit among visitors on Saturday, who were in more numbers than usual.
On the occasion, the authorities released a baby squirrel monkey along with its parents and a six-month-old striped hyena into an open enclosure. Later, Ms. Kshitija said every effort was being made to make Hyderabad zoo one of the most spectator-friendly parks in the country. “Over the years, the zoo has attained a special place in the hearts of animal and nature lovers given the wonderful ambience we always try to maintain at the sprawling park,” she said.
Special awards were presented to supervisor K. Mohan, animal keeper M. Balraj, garden supervisor Laxman Naik and head mali K. Ramulu for their outstanding service.
The other officials who graced the occasion include Munindra, PCCF (Administration), Shobha, Additional PCCF, and Sidhanand Kukrety, Director of Zoo Park.