Vandalur zoo managers improve facilities this summer, sees surge in visitor numbers

Chennai: Arignar Anna Zoological Park in Vandalur has rolled out a series of upgrades ahead of the summer rush, revamping rest sheds, restrooms, animal enclosures and internal roads.

Deputy director Manish Meena said the renovation drive was planned before the onset of peak summer. Ten rest sheds, long neglected for want of maintenance, have been refurbished and fitted with mobile charging points. “It is a small but useful addition for families spending long hours at the zoo. We wanted them to feel the difference as soon as they walk in,” he said.

Sanitation facilities have also been upgraded. Four new restroom complexes have been built, all designed to be accessible to persons with disabilities and equipped with ramps. Two older restroom complexes have been renovated and brought up to the same standard. In addition, two rooms for breastfeeding mothers, which had fallen into disrepair, have been restored and reopened.

For animal welfare, enclosures housing native birds have been repainted with heat-reflective coating to reduce summer radiation. Staff are also periodically spraying water on gunny bags wrapped around the structures to help keep temperatures down during the hottest months.

On the infrastructure front, 3.5km of internal roads have been re-laid to ensure smoother movement of battery-operated vehicles and bicycles used by visitors across the sprawling campus. The safari fleet has also been expanded, with five new battery-operated vehicles added. The zoo now has 20 such vehicles, which officials said would help reduce waiting time during peak hours.

The results are already visible in the footfall. On regular days, the zoo receives around 3,000 visitors. During summer weekdays, footfall rises to about 8,000, while weekend crowds cross 15,000.