The state forest department has decided to bring all zoos and mini-zoos under a centralised digital monitoring system to improve animal care and administrative transparency, forest minister Manoj Oraon said here on Tuesday.
Oraon, who held an administrative meeting with cabinet colleague Dipak Barman and officials of the Alipurduar district administration at Dooars Kanya, the district collectorate, said that all 12 zoos and mini-zoos across Bengal would be monitored via CCTV cameras from Aranya Bhavan, the forest department’s headquarters in Calcutta.
“We have decided to bring all zoos in the state under CCTV surveillance. Everything will be centrally monitored from my chamber in Aranya Bhavan. I want to ensure that animals are being provided with a proper quantity of food, adequate medical care, and that the on-duty employees are performing their responsibilities properly,” he said.
“This new monitoring system would allow officials, including myself, to oversee the functioning of zoos directly from my office,” the minister added.
Oraon also announced that the department-managed ticket counters would soon be digitised to improve transparency and efficiency.
According to sources in the department, the decision was taken following complaints of inadequate food supply and improper care of animals in some zoos.
A central control room has also been planned at Aranya Bhavan, from where officials will regularly monitor zoo operations and verify whether daily records are being maintained properly.
“It is an important decision as a substantial amount of public money is spent annually on zoo maintenance and animal welfare,” said a forest department officer.
Oraon said the forest department was planning to introduce one-horned rhinos and water buffaloes in the Buxa Tiger Reserve in Alipurduar district.
“Suitable habitat would be developed before these animals are released in the reserve area,” he said.
He also said that as part of the tiger augmentation in the BTR, the rehabilitation of families from the Jainti area, which is in the reserve area, has been taken up.
“There are 493 families in Jainti and only 12 families are yet to give their assent to shift to the new location that has been readied for them. I am planning to talk with them tomorrow,” said Oraon.
The minister, sources said, will also inspect the ongoing construction of the new Holong bungalow in the Jaldapara National Park. The earlier bungalow, an old wooden structure, was gutted in a blaze in June 2024.