New Delhi: Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday said the "failure" of Delhi Jal Board and NDMC to repair the sewer line and ensure supply of clean water to the Delhi Zoo led to the death of ten blackbucks, an endangered species, there.
"I had visited the zoo two weeks ago and inspected the sewage system there which was in a bad shape. "Despite my instructions to the NDMC and DJB officials to repair the sewer line that was pumping sewage water in some of the enclosures of the zoo, clearly nothing has been done in this direction. The death of animals is very unfortunate," Ramesh said here.
The blackbucks died after drinking contaminated water that had flowed back into their enclosure due to a blockage in the sewer line leading to the Yamuna for disposal of sewage. Eight of the animals died Sunday and two on Monday.
The Union Minister will visit the zoo tommorrow to hold a meeting with the officials of DJB and NDMC to ensure better water and sanitation facilities in the premises which
houses several endangered animals like tiger and lion. The zoo`s veterinary doctor Panneer Selvam attributed the death of the blackbucks to intestinal infection caused due
to consumption of sewage water.
After the incident, all the remaining 60 blackbucks have been moved to another place and they are being monitored, Selvam said adding that lime-spraying is being carried out in
the affected areas.
During 2009-10, 1792 animals have died in different zoos of the country, which the government feels is not alarming by international standards but certainly a cause for worry, Ramesh had told Parliament recently.
PTI
