The Arignar Anna Zoological Park (AAZP), Vandalur is hosting a two-week capacity building programme for 30 animal keepers recruited by the National Zoological Park, New Delhi.
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The training programme will cover a wide range of topics, including animal ethics, regulations and rights, enclosure concept, rescue and rehabilitation, wildlife capturing and handling methods, enrichment, feed distribution and visitor interaction.
The initiative is first-of-its-kind as graduates have been recruited for animal keeping similar to western countries, and are receiving formal training, said H. Dileep Kumar, Deputy Director, AAZP. Mr. Kumar, along with AAZP Assistant Director Manikandan Prabhu and other officials of the zoo, inaugurated the training programme on Friday.
As many as 30 graduates out of 60 recruited by National Zoological Park, Delhi through the national-level Multi Tasking (Non-Technical) Staff examination, have been sent to AAZP by the Central Zoo Authority and the other batch of 30 recruits will undergo training in Kanpur Zoological Park, Uttar Pradesh. At Vandalur zoo, the attendees will also learn about conservation breeding, record keeping, animal behaviour, husbandry practices, sustainable approaches for zoos. Apart from classroom sessions, they will be taken on field visits to Vedanthangal and Pulicat bird sanctuaries and Children’s Park in Guindy.
The sessions will be held by Zoo Educator Shankari and biologists M. Sekar, G. Kamaraj, and S.R. Chandramouli among others. “The trainees will be given hands-on experience and exposure to basic tasks of an animal keeper, like maintaining an enclosure, handling of different animals,” an official said.