NY rush sees Gorewada zoo earn record single-day revenue of Rs9.70 Lakh

Nagpur: Being Sunday, the first day of the New Year saw Nagpurians hanging out in big numbers. Not just MahaMetro, the Balasaheb Thackeray Gorewada International Zoological Park too saw a record footfall on Sunday.
As many as 2,500 visited Gorewada zoo on Sunday, a single-day record, which saw it generating a revenue of Rs 9.70 lakhs. On average, the zoological park generates a revenue of Rs 40,000 per day on weekdays, and over Rs 1 lakh on weekends.
“This was the highest single-day revenue since the park was inaugurated on January 26, 2021,” said Shatanik Bhagwat, Gorewada director, and divisional manager of Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra (FDCM).
Vehicles started lining up outside Gorewada zoo in the early morning. By 10am, the entire parking was full, and many vehicles were seen parked outside the sprawling premises. While many had opted for advance online bookings, there were others standing in a long queue for spot entry. Apart from the FDCM safari buses, the park had to hire private buses to ferry the visitors.
“We had to increase the number of trips, both in the morning and evening sessions. Many had come from cities like Amravati, Akola, Chandrapur, and nearby towns. Also, there were visitors from Pune, Mumbai and Guwahati too. It would not have been unfair to send them back without enjoying a safari,” said Bhagwat.
Gorewada, turning into a favoured tourist destination, has seen the number of visitors increase manyfold in the last few years. “Another reason for increased footfall is the sighting of animals due to removal of grass and weeds and habitat enrichment works,” said Bhagwat.
However, despite managing the show well, around 1,000 people had to return without a safari due to the huge crowd. In the last two years after its commissioning, over 2.80 lakh tourists have visited Gorewada, generating a revenue of Rs 7.58 crore for the FDCM.
Meanwhile, a similar situation prevailed in the city’s Maharajbagh Zoo, run by the Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth (PDKV). Zoo officer in charge, Dr Sunil Bawaskar, said, “Over 13,000 people visited the zoo generating revenue of Rs 4.50 lakh on Sunday. Many were forced to return without entering the zoo due to the heavy rush. There was no parking space available and people parked their vehicles outside the Nagpur University office.”
Maharajbagh Zoo contractor Ramesh Thakur said, “Though the number of visitors was high, I have seen more people visit the zoo on national holidays like Independence Day and Republic Day.”