Zoological Garden, Alipore, Kolkata

“Our planet’s lands and oceans are already stretched to meet the demands of 7 billion people. The human population continues to grow. The search for sustainable solutions is an economic and moral imperative if we are to create the future we want.” – Ban Ki-Moon

As the definition goes, a zoo or zoological garden is a facility in which wild animals are kept within enclosures, taken care of, displayed to the public, and in some cases used for conservation purposes. The oldest known zoological collection – a menagerie- was found at Hierakonpolis in Egypt, dated 3500BCE, where the early rulers kept their exotic animal collections. The rapid growth of the human population and development of infrastructures have led to massive exploitation of natural resources and degradation of forests. As animal populations become fragmented day by day, it leads to the loss of genetic variability of the animals, making them more vulnerable to extinction. Over time, the role of zoos has also changed from mere entertainment and exhibitionism to education and research and ex-situ conservation activities.

Also referred to as Alipur Zoo, the Zoological Garden in Alipore, Kolkata, West Bengal, is India’s oldest formally stated zoological park established on September 24, 1875, and officially inaugurated on January 1, 1876. The Alipore Zoological Garden is spread over 18.811 hectares and is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Kolkata and attracts many visitors, mainly during the winter season. The Alipore Zoological Garden is currently under the management of the Department of Forests, Government of West Bengal, and the West Bengal Zoo Authority.

Historical Timeline

Around the 1800s, Richard Wellesley, who served as the Governor-General of India, established a private menagerie on the banks of the Ganges in his summer home at Barrackpore. Lord Wellesley established the zoo as a part of the “Indian Natural History Project” as he realized the importance of making a detailed description of all the animals in Asia. As zoos started to be established in major cities in different parts of the world, the British community of Calcutta decided to upgrade the menagerie into a formal zoological garden. Sir Richard Temple, the then Lieutenant-Governor of Bengal, officially proposed the formation of a zoo in Calcutta in 1875. The Government allotted land for the zoo in Alipore – a posh suburb of Calcutta, and the zoo was inaugurated by King Edward VII – the then Prince of Wales, on January 1, 1876. The zoo was formally opened for the public on May 6, 1876.

The initial stock of the zoo consisted of the private collections of Carl Louis Schwendler and the animals that were donated by the then citizens of Calcutta from their collections. Several animal houses were built by the generous contribution of different donors such as Raja Rajendra Mullick Bahadur, Raja Suryakanta Acharya of Mymensingh, Maharaja Krishna Raja Wadiyar IV of Mysore, etc. The Zoological Park was initially administered by an honorary managing committee that included Carl Louis Schwendler and Dr. George King – the famous British botanist. Rai Bahadur Ram Brahma Sanyal served as the first Indian Superintendent of the Alipore Zoo.

Attractions

At present, there are 1,268 animal specimens in the Alipore Zoo, of which there are 29 species of mammals, 57 species of birds, and 19 species of reptiles. The zoo is downsizing to meet the animal comfort requirements as laid down by the Central Zoo Authority. The number of open-air enclosures for the animals has also been increased.

Some of the significant mammals that are found here include Bengal Tiger, Asiatic Lion, Indian Elephant, Common Leopard, Jaguar, One-horned Rhinoceros, reticulated giraffe, Chimpanzee, Brow antlered deer, barking deer, hippopotamus, Grant’s zebra, Eastern Grey Kangaroo, Nilgai, Blackbuck, Indian wild dog, jungle cat, sloth bear, fishing cat, etc.

Some of the notable avian species that are housed in the zoo include Red & Blue Macaw, Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, Asian Openbill Stork, Cockatiel, Reeves Pheasant, Grey Crowned Crane, Black Swan, Emu, Budgerigar, Eclectus parrot, Western Crowned Pigeon, Lady Amherst’s Pheasant, Ostrich, Grey Parrot, Moluccan Cockatoo, etc. Some of the important reptilian species housed in the well-known Reptile House of the Alipore Zoo include Yellow Monitor, Burmese Python, Indian Rat Snake, Checkered Keelback, Yellow Anaconda, Banded Krait, Golden Tree Snake, Russell’s Viper, Marsh crocodile, etc. The Alipore Zoo served as one of the first zoos in the world to breed megafaunas like white tigers, reticulated giraffe, and the Manipur brow-antlered deer.

The Alipore Zoological Gardens celebrated its centenary anniversary on September 24, 1975. The then Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, Smt. Indira Gandhi sent a message for the occasion. The message read:

“As a child, I loved zoos. Later it made me sad that creatures that had roamed so freely and proudly in the jungle should be forced to pace up and down narrow cages. In India, children and adults too sometimes harass and harm animals in zoos and outside. The modern zoological garden has a greater regard for animals and attempts to put them in surroundings as similar as possible to their natural habitat. […] Animal species which were formerly plentiful are now rare or under threat of extinction. This is not merely because of the growing population but due largely to carelessness and rapacity, which cloud the larger vision. The conservation of flora and fauna is neither a whim nor a luxury. It is essential for mankind’s survival. […] The zoos must help teach people to know animals and to love them; to reverse the trend towards destruction and to give a fair chance to our wildlife.” [Excerpted from Indira Gandhi: A Life In Nature by Jairam Ramesh]

P.S. All photographs have been taken by the Author.