If Alipore Zoo doesn’t appeal you any more, next Sunday you might drive down to Harinalaya Mini Zoo opposite gate numbers 5 and 6 of Eco Park in New Town following Google Maps. The long road leading to the Eco Park gates and Dhamsa Kitchen offers ample parking space for a one-time parking fee of Rs 50 for four-wheelers. Two installations of bright yellow antlers on the black iron gate welcome you to the 12.5-acre zoo developed by West Bengal Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation (WBHIDCO) against an entry free of Rs 50 for adults and children above the age of five, payable in cash or UPI. Free entry below age five. No other payment option or pre-booking is available. The zoo is open from 10am to sundown in the winter months, and till 6pm in summer
Photographs by Amit DattaMany of the enclosures allow visitors to enjoy watching animals like crocodiles without disturbing them. Hordes of deer with three to four antlers give immense joy. The barking deer in another enclosure is worth checking out. So is the next-door neighbour, two super agile emus, who could be seen darting across the enclosure again and again
When you are hungry, just step into Nature’s Cafe on the zoo premises itself and order from a wide array of Indian Chinese and other Indian dishes besides a host of snack options, mocktails and beverages. Though the zoo is a ‘No Plastic’ zone, some picnickers could be seen enjoying themselves with snacks sprawled over the garden tracts