<p>The zoo, planned to be located on 300 acres of land at Bilikallu reserve forest near Kamalapura in Hospet taluk of Bellary district, adjacent to the Daroji sloth bear sanctuary, Asia’s first dedicated haven for sloth bears, was strongly opposed by wildlife enthusiasts as ill-conceived with little thought to environmental and wildlife concerns, coming up as it did on a pristine dryland forest path.<br /><br />With Reddy languishing in the Chanchalguda jail of Hyderabad and facing prosecution by CBI on charges of building an illegal empire on illegal mining, the zoo may be given up by the government. The Forest Department, which was apparently bulldozed into according its approval by Reddy during heyday as minister, has now mustered courage enough to oppose the proposal which is half way through with the tender notification for construction work issued way back in March 31, 2011. <br /><br />Unethical move<br /><br />“The Daroji forest hosts several species of plants, bears, leopards, pangolins and is a fine habitat for sighting rare yellow throated bulbuls. It is unethical to remove the natural forest and its wildlife for the sake of an artificial zoo,” said Santosh Martin, a wildlife activist and honorary wildlife warden, Bellary district.<br /><br />The forest, according to K S Abdul Samad, a wildlife enthusiast, is also a breeding ground for several rare birds like Eurasian Eagle Owl, Spotted Owlets, Painted Sand Grouse, Chestnut Bellied Sand Grouse. Three species of quail are sighted here which include Bard Button Quail, Jungle Bush Quail and Rock Quail. Rain Quail is a migratory species sighted during rainy season. <br /><br />“This is not the first time the Daroji sanctuary is being threatened. Earlier, a steel plant was proposed here, which luckily did not take off. If the zoo comes up, the place will witness a man-animal conflict and will endanger the sloth bears,” he said.The department has issued tender notification for work worth Rs 20 crore and a DCF has also been posted to oversee the work and manage the zoo. However, the work that was apace on a war footing, has now slackened with the department disinterested. <br /><br />Not a feasible option<br /><br />An official in the department said: “The zoo is not feasible as the animals housed here may not survive the temperature that goes up to 45 degrees.” Nor is the zoo, planned to cost Rs 70 crore financiallly viable, they say.<br /><br />“It is with great difficulty, we are managing Bannerghatta and Mysore zoos. If we set up a zoo at Bellary, we need at least 4-5 crore rupees to manage it. Generating revenue is literally difficult here,” said an official from the department.<br /><br />Sources said that though a meeting to decide about this was called for on October 1, it was eventually postponed due to several reasons and another meeting will be called for shortly.<br /></p>
<p>The zoo, planned to be located on 300 acres of land at Bilikallu reserve forest near Kamalapura in Hospet taluk of Bellary district, adjacent to the Daroji sloth bear sanctuary, Asia’s first dedicated haven for sloth bears, was strongly opposed by wildlife enthusiasts as ill-conceived with little thought to environmental and wildlife concerns, coming up as it did on a pristine dryland forest path.<br /><br />With Reddy languishing in the Chanchalguda jail of Hyderabad and facing prosecution by CBI on charges of building an illegal empire on illegal mining, the zoo may be given up by the government. The Forest Department, which was apparently bulldozed into according its approval by Reddy during heyday as minister, has now mustered courage enough to oppose the proposal which is half way through with the tender notification for construction work issued way back in March 31, 2011. <br /><br />Unethical move<br /><br />“The Daroji forest hosts several species of plants, bears, leopards, pangolins and is a fine habitat for sighting rare yellow throated bulbuls. It is unethical to remove the natural forest and its wildlife for the sake of an artificial zoo,” said Santosh Martin, a wildlife activist and honorary wildlife warden, Bellary district.<br /><br />The forest, according to K S Abdul Samad, a wildlife enthusiast, is also a breeding ground for several rare birds like Eurasian Eagle Owl, Spotted Owlets, Painted Sand Grouse, Chestnut Bellied Sand Grouse. Three species of quail are sighted here which include Bard Button Quail, Jungle Bush Quail and Rock Quail. Rain Quail is a migratory species sighted during rainy season. <br /><br />“This is not the first time the Daroji sanctuary is being threatened. Earlier, a steel plant was proposed here, which luckily did not take off. If the zoo comes up, the place will witness a man-animal conflict and will endanger the sloth bears,” he said.The department has issued tender notification for work worth Rs 20 crore and a DCF has also been posted to oversee the work and manage the zoo. However, the work that was apace on a war footing, has now slackened with the department disinterested. <br /><br />Not a feasible option<br /><br />An official in the department said: “The zoo is not feasible as the animals housed here may not survive the temperature that goes up to 45 degrees.” Nor is the zoo, planned to cost Rs 70 crore financiallly viable, they say.<br /><br />“It is with great difficulty, we are managing Bannerghatta and Mysore zoos. If we set up a zoo at Bellary, we need at least 4-5 crore rupees to manage it. Generating revenue is literally difficult here,” said an official from the department.<br /><br />Sources said that though a meeting to decide about this was called for on October 1, it was eventually postponed due to several reasons and another meeting will be called for shortly.<br /></p>
