The city zoo raked up a record collection on Friday, though it rained cats and dogs here.
According to zoo director K. Udhayavarman, the museum and zoo saw a flood of visitors after the heavy shower in the morning. In fact, the whole of the rain-drenched Onam week proved to be beneficial for the zoo. A minimum collection of Rs.26,300 was recorded on August 23; the sum was Rs.52,545 on Uthradom and Rs.1,34, 245 on Thiruvonam. “But Chathayam day set the record, Rs.1,39,705, which was unexpected. We are expecting a good flow of visitors throughout this week,” he added. Parking fees for vehicles, which lined up on museum premises, too brought in money.
Children turned up in large numbers during Onam holidays and tickets for rides in their park were much in demand. The authorities plan to attract more of the younger brigade through a 3D theatre set to open on the museum premises in October. Based on a proposal submitted by Keltron, the government has sanctioned Rs.22,05,000 for the project.
“Works on acoustics, installation and spacing arrangements are in progress. The theatre will have a seating capacity of 30 for a show, which will focus on nature. The related movies and documentaries will be sourced from agencies and also from the vast collection with the Forest Department,” said Mr. Udhayavarman.
The work is expected to be completed by next month and after a few trial runs, the centre will be opened to public during the second week of October, he added.
