White tiger deal may be sealed in Thiruvananthapuram

For nearly a year now, the Thiruvananthapuram zoo has been waiting for the white tiger from the New Delhi zoo. Imminent arrival dates were given, followed by apologetic cancellations. Plans were as elaborate as bringing the feline by flight. But the tiger did not come.

Now, in one of the most promising sign in months, Zoo Director B. Joseph will visit Delhi next week to speak to his counterparts there and see this deal through.

The move follows yet another postponed arrangement. The tiger was to be brought from New Delhi by road earlier this month.

The Delhi contingent was supposed to leave on August 5 and arrive here on August 12. Sources say lack of consensus within the Delhi establishment caused the transfer to be put off.

This time, unlike the previous exchange with the Delhi zoo earlier this year (of gaurs, albino blackbucks and bird species), a group from the city zoo will not travel to New Delhi.

Instead, a team from Delhi will bring the white tiger by road and will travel back with the jaguar, Salman, according to the exchange agreement. The jaguar is being given on a breeding loan for a year.

Despite so many setbacks, authorities here are confident that the white tiger will be in the zoo here by Onam.

“All the paperwork has been done. The Central Zoo Authority has agreed to bringing the animal by road. This talks between the directors should seal the deal,” a senior official said.

Rather than waiting for the outcome of the meeting, the Zoo Department has asked the Public Works Department to renovate an enclosure adjacent to the lions. This area was once inhabited by the tiger, Rahul, before he got diagnosed with a viral disease and was moved to another cage. This plan is seen as more viable than splitting the open tiger enclosure into two sections which would mean one spacious area for a tiger being separated into two crammed spaces.