KARACHI, May 19: Karachi Cities are soon going to be able to have a first-hand experience of watching wild animals from close quarters as the city government has planned to open the hitherto closely-guarded area in the Safari Park by the end of this month, it is learnt.
According to sources, over 250 acres lying in the backyard of the Safari Park in Gulistan-i-Jauhar have been out of bound for the general public so far. The area houses over 500 mammals of 14 species brought from South America, Africa, Europe and Asia.
The sources said the park management planned to begin a safari service for which two airconditioned coaches would be utilized. The coaches will take the nature lovers to an eight-kilometre tour, passing through 11 enclosures that housed different species.
During the hour-long safari, trained guides will provide detailed information to visitors about the animals present in a particular enclosure. Guides have not been recruited so far.
Animals in the safari area include 50 Neel Gai (blue bull), 98 spotted deer; 73 black buck; 4 water buck; 11 Llamas; 28 red deer; 68 fellow deer; 22 water fellow deer; 4 Sambhar deer; 32 Mouflon; 2 Bactrian camels; 3 Yaks, 59 Gazelle; and Sika deer.
While the nature lovers will be able to watch exotic varieties from close quarters they will be surprised that local species like Sindh Ibex, Urial and markhors are not present either in the zoo or in the Safari Park.
The city government has been trying hard to get local species from the Sindh Wildlife Department for some time, but the department has so far not provided the required animals to the city government.
The Safari Park was developed in the 1970s and over 400 acres were allocated for the purpose. Besides a zoo, its planners also wanted to establish a safari area where people could drive through huge enclosures with wild animals roaming around them freely.
Some 11 enclosures to house different species were developed and a few animals were shifted here from the Karachi zoo in 1997. As the area is huge and has a vegetative cover, like that of animals' habitat with very little human interference, the animals are breeding at a fast pace.
Some of the animals are also regularly shifted from the Karachi zoo after every breeding season as the zoo has a limited space and also because of the fact that it is located in the centre of the old town which is engulfed with all sorts of air and noise pollution from the busy traffic arteries that encircle it and attracts a large number of visitors causing human interference.
The sources said the government had been trying hard to introduce the safari ride for over a couple of years, and had even advertised it a few times, but as the idea had been relatively new, contractors were not willing to take a risk.
Responding to Dawn queries, Karachi Zoo and Safari Park in-charge Mansoor Qazi said the government was introducing the safari ride plan this month. Mr Qazi said that adults would be charged Rs20 and children would be charged Rs10 per trip and after assessing response from visitors it could be revised.
He said the city government had promised to give two of its airconditioned coaches which were otherwise used for visiting delegations. Mr Qazi said the coaches would make a brief stopover in each of the enclosures and a guide would inform the visitors about the type of species.
He said Karachiites would like the safari ride once it was launched as they would get a first-hand experience of wild life and watch wild animals from a close range.
Mr Qazi said he was also trying to get a permission for walkie talkie sets that could be provided to the coaches so that they could contact management in case of any emergency. He said the area where the proposed safari ride plan would be launched, is huge and many security guards would have to be appointed to keep a close watch.
He said that the government was also planning to purchase more exotic animals like kangaroo and zebra. He said at present the safari area had only herbivorous mammals, and once the safari ride became popular, some of the carnivorous animals would also be shifted there.
He said at present there was no post of veterinary doctors at the Safari Park that presently houses approximately 500 mammals. He said that a vet posted at the zoo, visits the Safari Park once a week. He said zoologists, veterinarians, and paramedics were required at the park to give proper care to the animals.
