A portion of the Alipore zoo that houses the enclosures for herbivores was waterlogged on Friday as water gushed from a leaking supply line running beneath it.

The pipeline is over a century old. At present, it distributes non-potable water from the Hooghly to various parts of south Calcutta, primarily Bhowanipore and Kidderpore.

The walkway leading to the enclosures of deer and kangaroos was inundated.

The waterlogging, however, did not affect the animals, and there was no need to shift any of them.

“No animal was injured. No animal required shifting,” a senior zoo official told Metro.

The state’s urban development and municipal affairs minister, Agnimitra Paul,
visited the Alipore zoo on
Friday.

An official of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) said the line that leaked was an important source of water for Calcuttans decades ago, when hydrants supplying Hooghly water were widespread in the city.

“There are still some hydrants supplying water from the Hooghy, though the numbers have come down. During the British era or even later, washing and cleaning were done using non-potable water. We have now almost replaced all of it with potable water,” said the official.

Pumps had to be deployed to drain out the water on Friday morning. Suction machines were used to draw the accumulated water into mobile tanks that were carried away and emptied into sewer lines, KMC sources said.

An Alipore zoo official said a smaller leak was being repaired by the KMC since Thursday.

“Initially, the leak was not very big. On Friday morning, water started gushing out and flooded a portion of the zoo,” the official said.