Red Panda Conservation Breeding and Augmentation Programme of Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park, Darjeeling has been shortlisted as one of the top three finalists by World Association of Zoos and Aquariums for the 2024 WAZA Conservation & Environmental Sustainability Awards. The Ministry stated that the winner will be announced at 79th WAZA Annual Conference at Tarongo Zoo, Sydney, Australia on 7th November, 2024, informed Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, PIB.
The Ministry stated that seven females and two males of captive-bred red pandas were released in the Singalila National Park (SNP) in West Bengal between 2022 and 2024. Of the seven released females, three gave birth to five cubs in wild, it stated. Further, an initiative on habitat restoration has also been launched by PNHZP in Singalila National Park and Darjeeling division, in collaboration with the Wildlife Wing of the Government of West
Bengal.
The Ministry stated that, PNHZP is taking several in-house and collaborative research works related to Red Panda with institutions like CCMB, IISER and WII. The initiatives are being supported by the Biobanking and Genetic Resource Facility, wherein gametes, tissues, and DNA of Red Pandas and other endangered species will be preserved for future use. ‘These initiatives will be further continued in future for long term augmentation and conservation of Red Pandas in their natural habitat,’ stated the Ministry.
