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**Alipore Zoo Animal Numbers Mysteriously Plummet, Land Auction Sparks Outrage**

**KOLKATA, July 24, 2025** – Concerns are mounting over the well-being and future of Kolkata’s Alipore Zoological Garden, as former MP Jawhar Sircar has raised serious questions about the dramatic decline in animal and bird populations. Speaking at a public meeting organized by the NGO Save Wild Animal and Zoo and Our Nature (SWAZON), Sircar highlighted discrepancies in the zoo’s inventory data, citing a drop from roughly 1,872 creatures in 1996 to a mere 351 in the 2024 opening stock.

“This drastic decrease has no logic,” Sircar stated, pointing to a one-day discrepancy in the 2023-24 reports where the animal count inexplicably fell by over 300. He also noted the absence of records for large animals like lions, tigers, elephants, and giraffes in the 2024-25 data, demanding the state government provide answers.

Adding fuel to the fire, Dipankar Sinha, former Director General of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation and a SWAZON member, alleged that the West Bengal Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation (HIDCO) is attempting to auction off a portion of Alipore Zoo land, specifically the area housing the veterinary hospital and animal rescue center. Sinha argues that the land, located at 34A Belvedere Road, belongs to the zoo and its sale would jeopardize animal welfare.

“The land on which the veterinary hospital is located has been put up on auction. But KMC does not own that land, it is not the government’s to sell,” Sinha told *The Hindu*.

Swarnali Chattopadhyay of SWAZON further emphasized concerns of a larger conspiracy, suggesting the differing addresses for the zoo’s two sections, one of which is a heritage property, may be a ploy to facilitate the sale of the non-heritage portion.

SWAZON has filed a Public Interest Litigation at the Calcutta High Court, alleging the attempted sale violates the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972. The group fears the decline in animal numbers, coupled with the land auction, signals a “grave and dark future” for the city’s ecosphere.

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