The Central Zoo Authority (CZA) is all set to cancel the licence of Van Vihar National Park since it has failed to send its annual report this year. The fact came into light when the annual reports of all the zoological parks in the country were found uploaded on CZA’s website, including Indore’s Kamla Nehru Prani Sangrhalaya but Bhopal’s very own Van Vihar was missing from the list.
When national park director Sameeta Rajora was contacted, she said that the park is identified as a zoological garden as well as a national park due to which it was not necessary for the park authorities to make the annual report since it was only meant for zoos across the country.
Rajora said that Van Vihar has never sent its annual report and provide the CZA with all its updates in the annual inventory report which is sent in March every year.
However, the evaluation and monitoring officer refused to buy the statement of park director and said, “Even though Bhopal Van Vihar is not recognized entirely as a zoo but we perceive it to be a zoological garden and similar formalities have to be completed by Van Vihar like any other zoos in the country.”
The officer said that CZA has already sent reminders to Van Vihar officials to send their report but till date they have not received it. He said CZA will send them a final reminder for the report and if they fail to submit the report within a month’s time, their licence will be cancelled.
The officer added that submission of the annual report is a major component under the Recognition of Zoo Rules (RZR) and its violation will eventually lead to the cancellation of the license.
In August, the CZA had put the licence of Van Vihar on hold due to negligence of park officials in completing formalities. The CZA gave the licence to Van Vihar on account of it being a medium-sized zoo, which is valid for a time period of three years and needs to be renewed by paying a fee of Rs 10,000 and completing formalities, which park officials have failed to do on time.
