Penguin enclosure at Byculla Zoo inaugurated

The newly-built enclosure is spread over 1,800 sq ft and consists of a water pool, accommodation area, air handling units and a cooling system.

Mumbai, Mar 17: Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray and the Mayor Vishwanath Mahadeshwar on Saturday inaugurated a newly-built enclosure for penguins at the civic-run Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan (popularly known as Byculla Zoo) in Mumbai. It would be open for public viewing from Sunday.

Thackeray termed the penguin enclosure as "a pride of not only the people of Mumbai, but of the entire country". The penguins, kept in quarantine area of the Zoo since July last year, were moved to the public exhibit area on March 6 after requisite tests. Eight penguins -- three males and five females -- were procured from Coex Aquarium in Seoul, South Korea, in July last year.

However, one of the birds died in October due to bacterial infection. The newly-built enclosure is spread over 1,800 sq ft and consists of a water pool, accommodation area, air handling units and a cooling system. Shiv Sena youth wing leader Aaditya Thackeray tweeted that the penguin enclosure would be a "massive attraction". "I'm extremely proud that we are the first and only city in India to have these beautiful penguins at our zoo," he said.

PTI