Sena, BJP in war of words over penguins again

The penguins in their enclosure when the zoo reopened. Pic/Ashish Raje

The ongoing war of words between Shiv Sena and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the issue of penguins has now intensified. BJP had criticised Sena for non-Marathi names of penguins, high cost of enclosure and maintenance of penguins at Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Park and Zoo (Rani Bagh). However, mayor Kishori Pednekar, who visited Ahmedabad recently, said the names of penguins in Ahmedabad were not local and Mumbai excelled in terms of expenses incurred for the penguin project, tourist fees and other amenities.

Recently, the BJP had attacked Sena over the naming ceremony of penguins, where Pednekar had named a penguin cub Oscar. After returning from Gujarat Science City in Ahmedabad, the mayor held a press conference on Monday. While talking to the media, she announced that the cost for enclosure and maintenance of penguins in Mumbai is cheaper than the Science City of Gujarat. She added that Mumbai's help was sought for setting up a penguin cell in Gujarat.

Pednekar said, "In 2017, eight penguins from South Korea arrived at Mumbai's Rani Bagh. One of the penguins died shortly afterwards. We spent Rs 17 crore on a penguin enclosure. The entire fee of the zoo including the penguin enclosure is Rs 50 per person and Rs 100 for a family of four. Disabled and senior citizens have free access to Rani Bagh. Penguins enclosure here has 24 hours specialist doctors and staff. While in Ahmedabad, the penguin project at the Science Centre in Ahmedabad costs Rs 257 crore and you have to shell out Rs 200 to see penguins. There isn't even a holding area, quarantine facility and separate kitchen area. There are six African penguins and Gujarat does not have a team of expert doctors like Mumbai."

Rs 17 crore
Amount spent on a penguin enclosure in Mumbai