Pune: Rajiv Gandhi Zoological Park Gets Two More Tigers

Katraj, 17 August 2021: Two tigers have been admitted to the Rajiv Gandhi Zoological Park in Katraj. The tigers were transferred from Siddharth Garden and Zoo in Aurangabad in exchange for two nilgais under the animal exchange policy. The tigers are in quarantine due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) situation. When the zoo reopens for the public, people will be able to see them. The tigers, one male and one female, were brought to the city from Aurangabad after getting approval from the Pune Municipal Corporation and the Central Zoo Authority of India. According to the zoo authorities, the tiger’s name is Arjun and he is seven years old, while the tigress’ name is Bhakti who is four years old.

In 2015, a white tiger and tigress were transferred to the Katraj zoo from Aurangabad. Till now, the zoo has received two tigers from Aurangabad, taking the total number of tigers at Katraj zoo to eight.
Earlier, there were six tigers at the zoo, including three males and three females. Two of them are white and four are yellow.
There were 10 nilgais in the zoo. Of these, two nilgais have been given to Aurangabad in exchange for the tigers.

Hard task to transfer the tigers
Arjun and Bhakti, a pair of yellow tigers from Siddharth Garden and Zoo in Aurangabad, left for Pune on Saturday night. Before leaving for Pune, both gave a hard time to authorities to get into the cages. It took four hours to put them into the cages. There were 14 tigers at Siddharth Garden and Zoo. Hence, the Rajiv Gandhi Zoological Park in Pune had sought a pair of yellow tigers from the Central Zoo Authority due to the insufficient space at the zoo. Accordingly, the Central Zoo Authority had issued a letter to the director of the Aurangabad zoo regarding the transfer of the tigers to Pune.

A team from the Pune Municipal Corporation arrived on Saturday evening to take the tigers. The zoo staff planned to keep both tigers in cages until the squad arrived. Accordingly, small cages were set up in front of the tiger cage. Attempts were made to put Arjun and Bhakti in this cage. Arjun troubled the staff for four hours. Finally, after four hours, Arjun went to the cage. After that, Bhakti also went and sat in the cage. Meanwhile, the nilgais brought from Pune were handed over to Siddharth Garden and Zoo authorities and the team left for Pune at around 8 pm with both the tigers.

“The Rajiv Gandhi Zoological in Katraj is important for tourism in Pune district. It is always crowded with tourists but has been closed for the last 20 months due to the COVID-19 pandemic. When the zoo opens for the public again, people will get to see the two new tigers. They are now under surveillance for a few days. They are being taken care of properly. It remains to be seen whether they will like the environment of Pune. People will get to see the tigers when the zoo reopens,” said PMC Additional Commissioner Dnyaneshwar Molak.