KARACHI – Two pairs of lions, seized from the owner at the Karachi airport for not having proper documents, made headlines in the print and electronic media and attracted masses to the Karachi Zoo.
While Muhammad Irfan,the owner of Osaaka Traders, was battling Sindh Wildlife Department and Pakistan Customs authorities to recover the animals which were confiscated and sent to the zoo after he had them flown in from South Africa, people, especially women and children from different parts of city flocked to the zoo to have a look at these new guests.
The entertainment available to Karachiites includes having picnics in various parks and at the beach and the lions were seen as a welcome relief from the usual by the citizens. “These lions and lionesses are amazing. We have not seen anything new in the zoo for years now,” said Shahid Ali, a young banker. He lives in a small rented flat in a famous residential plaza on MA Jinnah Road. He hasthree children, two sons and a daughter and he spends most of his time in the bank.
“My children always get bored at home but they really liked the lions,” he added. The Karachi Zoo was established in 1878 and was named after Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi and after the partition of Indian sub-continent it was renamed ‘Karachi Zoological Gardens’ or ‘Karachi Zoo’.
Spread over an area of 33 acres with many old trees and cages, the zoo was once filled with different animals, big cats even the Royal Bengal Tiger, lions, birds and reptiles. It was an attractive entertainment place but the negligence of the related authorities converted this beautiful zoo of the past in to barren land. Most of the cages are either empty or the inmates show visible signs of negligence.
“There are no animals left in the zoo,” said a visitor. “We really liked the lions,” said Muhammad Akram, another visitor who was visiting the zoo with his children.
