Littering continues unabated at zoo

Plastic bottles strewn around in animal enclosures

It is a matter of fact that litter is the result of individual behaviour—choosing to litter or being careless in the handling of waste. Despite various initiatives by the zoo authorities and numerous NGOs stepping in to reduce littering at Nehru Zoological Park, the scenario continues to remain the same or even worse.

On Friday, a white tiger was spotted eating a plastic bottle. The animal had found the bottle in its enclosure. There are many more bottles lying in its premises. According to P Mallikarjuna Rao, director of Nehru Zoological Park, “The high influx of visitors to the zoo has been the reason for accumulating trash at the zoo premises. We have increased the garbage collection course to multiple times a day.”

Earlier the zoo had taken several steps to reduce littering. The initiatives included, banning polythene bags in the zoo, and visitors being provided jute bags while entering the zoo. On heavy rush days, more staff were deployed to keep the enclosures clean. Every evening from 5.30pm to 8pm, the trash bins were emptied. Over 75 additional garbage bins were also placed at several parts of the zoo.

Apart from these, zoo orientation was held at the mini auditorium, where the visitors were made aware of the ethics at the zoo. According to a spokesperson from Nehru Zoo Park, “We have been trying to spread awareness on the same subject, so that public do not litter. There is an eight minute film we show to the public but these efforts remain futile. We have been allowing people to carry food from their houses. The entrance fee being very nominal, many come to zoo and we do understand that many people cannot afford the rates at the cafeteria. And so we let them carry lunch boxes and now we are too ahead to change any existing rules.”

But none of these have delivered any positive results.

Littering in areas like zoo can have severe impacts. Elk and deer die in their attempts to eat plastic grocery bags left to blow away in the wind. Eating plastic bottles is also severely harmful, can puncture various internal organs. Litter also poses a threat to the health of the animals as it is often a breeding place for many types of bacteria.

Several NGOs have been taking part in extending their help to the authorities combat these issues.

“We have been trying to educate and spread awareness to the visitors of the zoo. The main issue we know is the sightseers buying popcorns and littering at the zoo premises, which can be dangerous for the animals,” shared Nihar Parulekar, the founder of Animal Rehabilitation and Protection Front. A clean community, by contrast, can discourage littering and improve community appearance and quality of life.