Mulund bird park gets provisional nod from CZA

MUMBAI: To reduce overcrowding at the Byculla Zoo, the civic administration will create an alternative tourist attraction – a bird park housing 24 exotic avian species in Mulund West, around 35 km from Byculla. The Mulund bird park has received provisional approval from Central Zoo Authority (CZA), subject to certain compliances. The plan, pegged at ₹100 crore, has been forwarded to the state urban development department.

According to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the Mulund bird park will function as a satellite facility, an extension of the Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Botanical Udyan and Zoo, commonly referred to as the ‘Byculla Zoo’.

Situated on a four-acre plot, it will house around 200 birds representing 24 species of regional, endangered and exotic birds, including black swans, black munia, cockatoo galah, ostriches, crowned pigeon, scarlet macaw, red-breasted parakeet, blossom-headed parakeet, white peacock, Malabar grey hornbill and more.

“The Byculla Zoo, at present, has two aviaries for terrestrial birds such as parrots and aquatic birds,” said Dr Sanjay Tripathi, director of the zoo. “The number of visitors to the zoo has increased beyond our expectations. We want to develop a suburban facility where footfalls can be diverted,” he said.

Tripathi said a four-acre plot is available as an amenity plot in Mulund. The aviary will occupy 10,859sq m, while the recreational area will encompass 3,728sq m. It will include themed enclosures such as the Asian Zone, African Zone, Australian Zone and American Zone, each highlighting unique bird species and their native habitats.

“We are focusing on birds that are important from a conservation point of view. We will have a small interactive facility, which will conduct regular awareness programmes. There will be in-house hospital, a quarantine facility and a food management facility,” said Tripathi.

Explaining why the bird park is being positioned as a “satellite facility” of the Byculla Zoo, and not a new one, he said, “We would have to go with a different administrative procedure to the government and so it is treated as an extension and it is in the same city in the MMR region.”