Entry fee to Bannerghatta park raised

From April 15, visitors to the Bannerghatta Biological Park will have to pay an increased entry fee.

The decision to increase the fee to the popular park in the city was taken during the Zoo Authority of Karnataka's governing council meeting on March 27.

The meeting decided that the hike was the only way to meet the rising costs of animal maintenance, animal feed, diesel costs and other expenditure, according to an official communiqué.

The decision was also ratified by the Zoo Authority of Karnataka's Sub-Committee and Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation Ltd. earlier this week. The communiqué added that the fee was last revised in 2007. The next revision was due in April 2009.

Entry fee for each section of the park has been increased across all categories. Entry to the zoo will now be Rs. 45 for adults, Rs. 25 for children and Rs. 30 for senior citizens. The fee for the Butterfly Park is Rs. 15 for children and Rs. 25 for adults.

Grand Safari

The fee for the Grand Safari, where one can catch the big cats, including tigers and lions, bears and various herbivores in their natural environment, has been raised to Rs. 115 for adults, Rs. 70 for senior citizens and Rs. 60 for children.

The Elephant Joyride will now be Rs. 60 for adults, Rs. 30 for children and Rs. 45 for senior citizens.

The fee for the long (1.5 to 2 hours) and short (one hour) treks through the biological park where one can encounter bison, chital, sambar, blackbuck and crocodiles, has also been raised. While the fee for the long trek is Rs. 70 for adults, Rs. 30 for children and Rs. 55 for senior citizens, for the short trek, it is Rs. 45 for adults, Rs. 20 for children and Rs. 30 for senior citizens.

The fee for using a still camera is Rs. 25 and Rs. 200 for a video camera.