The deer population in the deer enclosure of the Hill Palace Museum will soon be rehabilitated.
The Kerala Forest Department has constituted a committee to chart out a rehab plan for the animals in captivity. The deer may be shifted to some locations in Thekkady, Forest Department sources said.
Incidentally, the deer enclosure houses nearly 100 spotted deer and nearly 30 sambar deer. The Zoo Authority of India had also repeatedly directed the State Forest Department to close down the facility as it was functioning in violation of the guidelines.
A Forest Department official said that the deer enclosure was technically closed down some time ago.
The Authority has made it clear that it will not be allowed to operate any further.
The animals cannot be directly released to the wild as several protocols will have to be observed for its release to the wild, Forest officials said.
An earlier attempt to sterilise the animals had to be called off as some failed to survive.
The deer deaths had also led to public outrage, said a Hill Palace staffer.
Transferring the animals from one location to other is also a risky affair as causalities can occur while tranquilising and transporting the animals, pointed out an official.
