The amount of Rs. 2 crore earmarked in the State Budget is inadequate to begin work on the much awaited Puthur zoological park, Friends of Zoo activists have said.
“The preliminary works of the zoological park have to be started in 2015-16. In a memorandum to the government, the Forest Department had urged it to allocate Rs. 35 crore for the park. The high-level meeting convened by the Chief Minister to review the works of the park had agreed to this demand. But, the meagre Rs. 2 crore allocated in the budget has disappointed everybody,” said M. Peethambaran, secretary of the forum.
The procedure for shifting the Thrissur zoo to Puthur has been going on at a snail’s pace since 2011.
The decision to set up a zoological park at Puthur was taken at a meeting convened by the then forest minister K.B. Ganesh Kumar in 2011. The Cabinet gave its green signal for the project in 2012.
The tender for the work was invited in 2013. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy laid the foundation for the park in March 2013.
The government has signed a contract with an Australian-based design company for the design and planning of the zoo, and the technical experts for the company had visited the proposed site. Former zoo director S.B. Yelaki was appointed as nodal officer for the project.
The Thrissur Zoo, currently situated in 13 acres of land in the heart of the city, will be shifted to the park once it is ready.
The inordinate delay in the procedures has been inviting a series of protests from the people.
The procedure for shifting Thrissur Zoo to Puthur has been going on at a snail's pace since 2011.
