AFTERNOON DISPATCH & COURIER (Bombay, India) 29 August 05 First a hybrid hobra dies, in a while, it's a crocodile - PETA says zoo to blame, zoo discounts PETA's cries
A bitter battle among crocodiles at the Veermata Jijabhai Bhosale Udyan (Rani Baug) in Byculla has claimed the life of a female crocodile. The reptile was found dead by zoo staff early this week. According to zoo doctors, more than one resident crocodiles probably attacked the female crocodile on Sunday night leading to its death. However, the sorry state of the pit in which the crocodiles are housed, tells a different story. The pool in which the crocodiles lay was filthy and covered with a coat of moss while the land around the pool was unclean. Interestingly, the crocodile pit attracts is a major attraction for visitors to the zoo. Sadly though, the way things stand at the moat, it does not seem too difficult for visitors to trouble the reptiles.
Madhav Bhikaji Shinde, an 81-year-old retired mill worker visits the zoo almost everyday since five years as he is passionate about animals. He says that the condition in which the animals are treated is deplorable.
"I come here every morning and the manner in which the animals are looked after is miserable. There seems to be no cleaning work done on the weekly holidays they have."
About the crocodile's death, he said that the unclean moat and this results in stress, leading to fights and resulting in death.
Anuradha Sawhney, Chief of PETA-India accuses the zoo authorities for the rising number of animal deaths.
"The zoo authorities are responsible for these deaths. Often, it is seen that no one is around the zoo to keep an eye on visitors who throwing stones at the animals and injuring them in the act. Especially the crocodiles have a tough time inside their ring, which is almost filled with filthy moss. As per rules, the doctors are supposed to monitor the animals every day. That too is not happening. Naturally, the stress level of the animals increases due to such conditions.
" When asked about the claim made by the zoo authorities of the mating season, leading to unpredictable and aggressive behaviour, she said, "Mating is for all the animals. But these crocodiles when attacked do not have a place to hide. Obviously, such incidents will occur in future too."
As per reports, the zoo has witnessed this as second death, after an exotic hybrid of a horse and a zebra - the Hobra - died in the zoo hospital following a heart attack on August 15.
Dr. M.V Wani, Deputy Superintendent of the zoo brushes the issue aside, claiming that allegations made by the PETA activists are not based on the post-mortem reports.
"We have the post mortem reports with us. The report clearly maintains that the crocodile had deep wounds on her body. Crocodiles are sluggish animals and have sufficient level of water inside their pool and adequate land for basking in the sun. I have 30 years of experience in this zoo. These activists just want to criticise us on any issue. Last year, we had challenged them to take over the safeguarding work at the zoo. But when they came to know that it would need a sum of Rs. 5-6 lakh, they backed off."
The crocodile's death has given birth to a pow-wow between human beings.
First a hybrid hobra dies, in a while, it's a crocodile