Occupation: Supplies feed to Thiruvananthapuram zoo
It’s only 8 a.m. but already I’m late. I have to travel all across Thiruvananthapuram to collect reeds, grass and leaves to feed the animals in the zoo. I have to bring 1,060 kg of fodder by 2.30 p.m. today. Thankfully, I have several labourers to help me out in this endeavour and they are already on the job. This is my routine everyday, 365 days of the year. Come hell or high water, wedding or funeral, the animals have to be fed. It’s non negotiable. If I do not, the poor animals might starve and I don’t want that on my conscience!
My business partner, Ambili, and I are on a one-year, renewable contract with the zoo authorities to supply fodder, cattle feed, chicken feed, Bengal gram, cotton seed, green gram, mineral mix, varieties of amaranthus and so on, as prescribed by the zoo veterinarian.
The reeds/grass are mainly to feed the hippopotamuses, while the leaves are mostly for spotted deer, antelopes, sambhar deer, Indian bison, rhinos, Nilgai and so on. The amaranthus/spinach is for the Ostriches, I am told. In addition, we also supply chickens, specifically 100 chicks of Giriraja variety, every week, meant for the anacondas in the zoo. We are also on contract to supply fodder for the herd of deer in Neyyar dam wildlife sanctuary.
Plucking grass, reeds and leaves is the most challenging part of the job. The hippos don’t like shrubs and grass that grow on dry land but prefer reeds that grow on the banks of lakes and rivers and streams and on marshes and wetlands. We have to be careful what type of reeds we pluck for them; some which might seem fine to human touch might have sharp edges or tiny spines that can injure their oral cavities. We mostly pluck cheenivalli , a variety of reed which grows in plenty on the banks of Akkulam, Veli and Vellayani lakes and along the banks of rivers and streams in the city, for them.
To collect leaves, we comb homes and gardens in city, mostly from trees such as jackfruit, banyan, sacred fig, thali tree and so on. Home owners usually don’t object when we tell them that it’s for the zoo animals and very rarely do they ask for compensation. It’s only in the summer, when many of the deciduous trees shed their leaves and also during jackfruit fruiting season that we feel the crunch and we have to travel to suburban centres like Nedumangad to collect leaves. Otherwise, thanks to the bountiful greenery in the city, we can collect all foliage from within the Corporation limits itself.
This is my 20th year on the job and I enjoy it very much. I am 46 years old and I live in Ooruttambalam. I used to be an autorickshaw driver but it came to a point where I was not making enough money to take care of my family, comprising my wife and three children – Nandu, Ananthu and Nithya, all of whom are school students. This job offers me a steady income all year around and the satisfaction that the animals are eating quality fodder on a daily basis.
(A weekly column on men and women in the city who make Thiruvananthapuram what it is)
