Sanjay Gandhi National Park celebrates new life as lioness Manasi delivers cub

Tourists visiting the renowned captive lion safari at Sanjay Gandhi National Park SGNP have a reason to rejoice A lioness named Manasi gave birth to a healthy and active cub on Thursday night at 940 pm The forest department has confirmed that the lioness began nursing the newborn cub at 245 am marking a promising start to the cubs life in captivityThe captive lion safari first introduced in SGNP in 1975ndash76 has been a major draw for tourists and an essential source of revenue for the park Visitors flock to experience the thrilling closeup view of lions which are otherwise challenging to spot in the wildInterestingly the lions currently housed in the safari were originally born to Asian and African lions rescued from circuses Over the years the Central Zoo Authority of India has implemented strict guidelines prohibiting mating between the two subspecies in captivity because of which the population of the captive lions in the SGNP did not increaseThe tiger and lion safari at SGNP remains one of the most popular attractions in the country Since its inception in the 1990s the safari has offered visitors a chance to observe these majestic creatures in a secure semiwild environment Tourists are transported in minibuses to an area fenced off from the surrounding park ensuring safety while allowing a unique viewing experienceMumbai Sanjay Gandhi National Park to get pair of Asiatic Lions from GujaratIf everything goes as per the plans then soonSanjay Gandhi National Park SGNPwill get a pair of Asiatic Lions for its captive lion safari from Gujarat in exchange for a pair of Royal Bengal Tigers The state forest department has given its consent for the same and has informed about the same to the Central Zoo Authority CZAAn official from theMaharashtra forest departmentsaid ldquoIn the first week of November we have sent a letter to the member secretary Central Zoo Authority New Delhi regarding the consent for exchange of animals between Sanjay Gandhi Zoological Park and Sakkarbaug Zoo Junagadh Gujarat As per the proposal SGNP will give a breeding pair of Bengal Tigers to Sakkarbaug Zoological Park Junagadh in exchange for a breeding pair of Asiatic LionsrdquoThe Maharashtra forest department has requested CZA to accord prior permission to the said proposal as per the provisions under Sec 38 1 1 of Wildlife Protection Act 1972 It may be noted that Dr V Clement Ben additional principal chief conservator of forests western wildlife region Mumbai and SGNP director andconservator of forests G Mallikarjunhave played an important role in this entire processIn the last week of November 2022 a pair of captive breeding lions had arrived at SGNPMumbai from Sakkarbaug Zoological Park in Junagadh Gujarat When the pair of the lions was brought to SGNP the captive safari had only one lion left but it too died last week In the month of October 2022 Ravindar the oldest lion at SGNP had died due to agerelated disease The pair of lions that was brought to SGNP from Gujarat was three years old and initially they were kept in isolation and later released in the captive safari areaThecaptive lion safariwas started in SGNP in 1975ndash76 and it has been an important tourist attraction helping to generate revenue for the park The lions in the safari were born to Asian and African lions rescued from circuses The central zoo authority has directed not to let mating happen among the Asian and African lions in captivity because of which the population of the captive lions in the SGNP did not increaseFor many years SGNP authorities have been trying to bring a pair of breeding lions from Gujarat for its captive lion safari During the MVA government the then environment minister Aaditya Thackeray too had instructed the SGNP authorities to initiate the process of getting captive lions from Gujarat to SGNPIn September 2022 Maharashtra forest minister Sudhir Mungantiwar met with his Gujarat counterpart Jagdish Vishwakarma in Ahmedabad and discussed the exchange of two Asiatic lions from Sakkarbaug Zoological Park in Junagadh for a pair of captive tigers from the SGNP They decided to seek joint approval from the Central Zoo Authority for the same In September 2020 the SGNP also approached the Telangana forest department for a pair of lions from Nehru Zoological Park in Hyderabad However there was no development as the Telangana forest department wanted lions in exchange for lionsThe captive tiger and lion safari at SGNP one of the mostvisited national parks in the country was started in the 1990s and since then has been an important tourist attraction During the safari visitors are ferried in mini buses into an area that is fenced from all sides