Manipur Zoological Garden targets to increase Sangai, Nishikant donates Rs 5.5 lakh

Imphal: Manipur Zoological Garden is targeting to increase the number of state animal Sangai (Cervus Eldi Eldi) to at least 19 at both Sangai Second Home and Manipur Zoological garden in the coming season.

The zoological garden director L.Biramangol Singh said this during adoption programme of Sangai held at the office of Team Nishikant located at Sega Road Thouda Babhok Leikai, Imphal West on Sunday. He said conservation of wildlife is conservation of environment.

The adoption programme was first started in September 2019 at Sangai Second Home, Langol, Imphal West by keeping a total of 14 Sangai deer including seven males and seven females. To aware the people including students and visitors at Manipur Zoological Garden, four Sangai have been kept at Manipur Zoological Garden.

Since 2019 till date the number of Sangai at Manipur Zoological Garden has been increased to nine including five males, three females and one Sangai fawn. However due to some unavoidable circumstances one causality was found at Sangai Second Home which is the captive breeding centre of Sangai, the director said.

State chief conservator of Forest, L. Joykumar said the brow-antlered deer has been one of the endangered deers. In 1971 Sangai population was decreased to 17. Due to promotion and effort to protect Sangai the number of population was increased to over 250 which is a big achievement in the history of Wildlife conservation, he added.

Manipur Zoological Garden is planning to start a policy for Sangai Adoption programme for public in order to promote the only species Sangai, he said.

MLA Nishikant Sapam donated monetary assistance of Rs 5,52,744 to Manipur Zoological Garden Society.

Nishikant said politician should serve people sincerely instead of impersonating as a patriot. He added that similar programme will be continuously taken up in the near future to preserve Sangai, but not to earn fame.