New Town likely to get 9-acre wildlife conservation park
Times of India | 19 May 2025
Kolkata: With an indigenous population of golden jackals and other wildlife, like snakes and monitor lizards, often being spotted in New Town, the govt is considering a plan to develop an urban wildlife forestry conservation park in the township with the aim to preserve such animals to avoid man-animal conflict.Sources from the state secretariat said the Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation (Hidco) has earmarked a nine-acre plot near Kadampukur in the border area of New Town Action Area II. The forest department is preparing a concept note on the plan, govt sources said. "The plan is in its preliminary stage. The New Town Kolkata Development Authority (NKDA) had earlier proposed to the forest department if a wildlife conservation park could be set up since any new township often displays wildlife to a certain degree, and there is a need for conservation of wildlife. A meeting was recently convened between forest department, Hidco and NKDA officials, where the forest department has primarily shown interest in the proposal," a govt official said.Wildlife conservationists said the administration was on the right track. "It will be a good initiative if such a conservation park is developed, as wildlife like jackals, monitor lizards, and snakes can be conserved, it will prevent man-animal conflict and also save them from road mishaps in the urban setup. The conservation effort would be more effective if, in the long run, after their numbers increase following breeding, the animals are released in the jungle to rehabilitate them in the natural setup in which they belong," said wildlife conservationist Biswajit Roy Chowdhury.New Town is surrounded by panchayat areas of greater Rajarhat and Bhangar, which still have a considerable number of wildlife. These animals — jackals and monitor lizards — often stray into New Town and come in front of vehicles. Multiple jackals died in road accidents in New Town in the first two months of this year, and 12 injured jackals were rescued.Not only jackals, but both venomous and non-venomous snakes are often spotted in different places of the township, especially during the monsoon, with multiple snakebite deaths reported in 2023. Following this, the New Town Kolkata Development Authority (NKDA) came up with a detailed guideline on snakebite management.There is the forest department's wildlife rescue and transit facility in Salt Lake, where snakes and other wildlife spotted in nearby areas are rescued and brought in before they are released into the jungle. The facility often receives calls from different areas of Salt Lake and New Town for rescuing snakes, including venomous ones, that are spotted. At present, there is also the mini zoo spread over 12.5 acres next to Eco Park, which has animals like spotted and bark deer, zebra, giraffe, and a hippopotamus that were brought in under the animal exchange plan.Hidco has also developed a bird enclosure in New Town, which has become a safe habitat for birds and turtles.