• The Rajasthan state Forest Department has proposed to construct a zoo inside Keoladeo National Park, a World Heritage Site popularly known as Bharatpur bird sanctuary, to display a range of wetland species, including rhinos, water buffaloes, crocs, dolphins and exotic species.
• As per the the Detailed Project Report (DPR) of the Rajasthan Forestry and Biodiversity Development Project (RFBDP)purpose of this zoo, called Wetland ex-situ Conservation Establishment (WESCE), is “to rejuvenate the bio-diversity of Keoladeo National Park, thereby boosting its outstanding universal values.”
• The Rs 15-crore WESCE plan for Bharatpur is part of the ambitious RFBDP for which Agence Française de Développement (AFD), the overseas development arm of the French government, has agreed to fund up to Rs 1,200 crore over eight years.
• According to the DPR, several facilities are planned inside Keoladeo national park. These include:
  • a breeding and re-introduction centre for locally extinct species, such as otters, fishing cats, blackbucks, hog deer, etc, “with collateral provision as exhibits for tourists”;
  • an aquarium for indigenous species like Gangetic Dolphin, crocodiles;
  • enclosures for the display of large wetland species like Indian Rhino, Water Buffalo, Barasingha (swamp deer); an aviary, a reptile house and a veterinary care facility; and
  • an integrated administrative block, tourist facilities, and residential quarters for Park manager, field staff and families.

Keoladeo National Park

• It is a Ramsar as well as a World Heritage Site.
• Due to its strategic location in the middle of Central Asian migratory flyway and presence of water, large congregations of ducks, geese, coots, pelicans and waders arrive in the winter.
• Wetlands of Keoladeo are not natural, they are dependent on monsoon and on water pumped in from outside.
• Fauna and Flora: Some 364 species of birds, including rare Siberian crane.