The Sardar Patel Zoological Park, which is coming up near the ‘Statue of unity’ in Gujarat, has got 43 new inmates from across the world.
Animals like giraffes, zebras, oryx, gemsbok, blue wildbeest and impalas have been specially flown in by the Hyderabad-based Seaways Shipping Ltd on the occasion of the 144th birth anniversary of Sardar Patel on October 31.
The Zoo and safari are being developed as an effort to make the place an international tourist hub. The ‘Statue of Unity’, a memorial for the country’s first Home Minister Sardar Patel is in Kevadia, in Narmada district. The statue stands high (182 metres) as the tallest in the world at present. Patel has been credited for integrating 552 princely states into the Indian Union.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated the Rs 2,989 crore project located about 3.5 km downstream of Sardar Sarovar dam in October 2018, and paid floral tribute to the Statue on October 31, 2019.
Seaways Shipping transported the animals in a Boeing 777 from Johannesburg (South Africa) to Ahmedabad on a chartered flight. The Seaways team chose this specific model of aircraft to ensure a safe and comfortable journey for the animals, a company spokesperson told BusinessLine .
Seaways Shipping is one of the major logistics companies in India, with expertise in handling special shipments across the world.
In October it had also helped to transport over 30 rare and exotic species including wallabies, llamas and alpacas from the Netherlands to this zoological park.
The zoo which is being developed across 1,300 acres over seven levels, will house a large variety of animals like lions, tigers, leopards, various types of deer and antelopes, giraffes, zebras, rhinos, bisons and other animals.
According to information about 26 lakh tourists have visited the Statue of Unity in the past year, making it one of the most prominent tourist destinations in India.