After lion & peacock, Brahminy duck dies at Kanpur zoo now

Kanpur: After a lion and a peacock, a Brahminy duck died at the Kanpur zoo on Saturday evening. The staff conducted sanitisation of the enclosure after safely removing the carcass, which was dispatched to the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) in Bareilly for examination.While a 15-year-old Asiatic lion named Pataudi died on Wednesday night, a peacock was discovered lifeless on Thursday evening along the jungle safari route.The specimens from both animals were dispatched to the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD) Bhopal for analysis.Meanwhile, forest ranger Naved Ikram said that samples of more than 100 zoo staff have been taken for IT-PCR tests by a team from the district health department under the supervision of the chief medical officer. According to him, all the animals and birds are being checked every two hours. They are being given multivitamins to boost their immunity along with their food. Samples from several other animals and birds were taken on Sunday and are being sent to the lab. It is expected that their reports will be available by Tuesday.The lion's sample was previously forwarded to the Bareilly laboratory from Gorakhpur Zoo, with the district administration awaiting the conclusive report. On Saturday, Bhopal's NIHSAD laboratory confirmed the presence of bird flu.A team comprising additional director Dr Rajendra Prasad, joint director Dr Vivekanand Gangwar, joint director Dr Rajeshwar Singh, additional director Dr Anil Kumar Gehlaut, chief veterinary officer IDN Chaturvedi, alongside zoo veterinary officers and rangers, examined the lion's enclosure.The team also assessed the birds and wildlife in the hospital area, conducting a two-hour investigation into their dietary patterns and other variables. Zoo director Shraddha Yadav announced that a one-kilometre radius surrounding the zoo has been designated as a red zone. The facility has been sectioned into six zones, with sanitisation machines in operation. They have also acquired a new large machine.The administration is implementing measures to safeguard the wildlife while maintaining records of their food and water consumption. Currently, all remaining animals are reported to be in good health.