Lucknow: Shortage of buffalo meat due to the crackdown on illegal slaughterhouses by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has hit one set of animals hard - the lions and other carnivores in Uttar Pradesh zoos.
Three pairs of lions and two cubs at Etawah Lion Safari have reportedly refused to chicken provided to them by the authorities and are becoming restless at not getting their regular ration of 8-10 buffalo meat.
Sources at the Lion Safari Etawah said it's two days since the lions ate their meal.
“There is a shortage of buffalo meat and we are forced to feed lions chicken and mutton. We are aware of the fact that lions need buffalo meat to survive as chicken and mutton are low on fat,”
a worker told News18.
The Lucknow zoo, Nawab Wajid Ali Shah Prani Udyaan, needs 235 kg of meat a day to feed 47 carnivores - seven tigers, four white tigers, eight lions, eight panthers, 12 wild cats, two hyena, two wolves and two jackals. But due to the shortage in red meat due to the government's crackdown on illegal slaughter houses, authorities had to fall back on white meat.
“There is a shortage of buffalo meat and the supply is not adequate. So we are feeding the animals chicken and mutton. Animals here haven't rejected it. It's a temporary arrangement and I hope the situation will be back to normal soon,” Anupam Gupta, director of Lucknow Zoo.
The scene at Allen Forest Zoo in Kanpur is no different, with the 70 carnivorous animals there fed only white meat. The worse case is of a pregnant lioness which is refusing to eat chicken.
“After the crackdown on illegal slaughterhouses there has been a shortage of meat. We have not been able to source meat from the market as the shops have been closed. I am really worried about the pregnant lioness,” said a senior vet at the zoo.
After this report was published, Uttar Pradesh Forest Minister Dara Singh Chauhan said the government will take steps to provide red meat to zoos.
"Buffalo meat will be supplied from legal slaughterhouses to all zoos and the lion safari at Etawah. The problem will be taken care of by the government," Chauhan said.
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