Kolkata’s 148-year-old Alipore Zoo is in its own grave after a city-based NGO, ‘Swajan’, said that 321 animals have inexplicably disappeared during the night. The organization has filed a petition in the Calcutta High Court, raising long-standing inconsistencies in official stock reports.
As per the petition, the animal count in the zoo at the end of the financial year 2023-24 was 672, but to start the 2024-25 financial year, the number had mysteriously fallen to a mere 351. “This sudden figure of animal vanishing suggests not only bureaucratic negligence but also illicit wildlife trade,” said Subhovrata Ghosh, World Animal Protection India’s Wildlife Research Manager.
30-Year Pattern of Discrepancies Revealed
A study of Central Zoo Authority (CZA) data indicates that such discrepancies in the number of animals have been going on for almost 30 years. The petition had pointed to repeated discrepancies in annual reports since 1995-96, with animals rising or falling mysteriously, sometimes by dozens, sometimes by hundreds.
For example, the zoo had 1,805 animals on March 31, 1996, and the count increased to 1,872 the next day. “A mistake for one or two years is understandable, but such a variation over 30 years is unacceptable,” noted Ghosh.
Adding to the worry, the zoo has not filed its inventory returns for the financial years 2021-22 and 2022-23, which is a compulsory submission according to CZA norms.
Missing Iconic Species Raise Eyebrows
The newest inventory report, released on March 31, 2025, asserts that the zoo is currently home to 1,184 animals. To everyone’s surprise, animals like Bengal tigers, Asiatic lions, leopards, elephants, and jackals, seen in the last year, are absent from the 2025 list. Yet, visitors have also taken videos and pictures of the missing animals lately, verifying their ongoing presence.
When asked for his explanation, Zoo Director Arun Mukherjee replied, “This difference is only a calculation mistake. There is chaos in our internal accounts and the CZA report. We are correcting it. We will inform you about the details later.”
Allegations of Land Misuse and Deliberate Shrinkage
The NGO’s petition also blames the state government for trying to close down the zoo by artificially lowering its animal population. It charges a conscious policy to make way for private commercial occupation of land. A major issue of conflict is a 3-acre space at 34A, Belvedere Road, where the zoo hospital and rescue centre are located, which has been auctioned for commercial e-tender by the West Bengal Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation.
By CZA guidelines, a zoo needs to have more than 700 animals in order to be termed as a ‘large zoo’. Alipore Zoo, having previously achieved that threshold, is now listed as a ‘medium-sized zoo’. The petition alleges that this downgrading was due to ‘deliberate shrinkage’.
Call for Nationwide Reforms
India now has 157 licensed zoos. The Alipore case has generated demands for across-the-nation reforms. “Neither the zoo authorities nor the Central Zoo Authority have been able to catch this discrepancy for years. This is a big danger,” said Ghosh. He has called for a transparent inventory system for all Indian zoos.
Since then, the CZA has requested a detailed report from West Bengal’s Chief Wildlife Warden. The case will be heard by the Calcutta High Court on July 24. The petition requests the court to instruct zoo authorities to produce the past 10 years of animal inventories and to give a detailed reason for all the discrepancies.
