The zoo, which was closed since June 20 after bird flu was confirmed in rare birds including vultures, falcons, ducks, as well as wild cats and tigers, is set to reopen to the public from Friday after environmental samples showed no infection.
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The Central Zoo in Jawalakhel is set to reopen to the public from tomorrow. The zoo is set to reopen from Friday after tests on environmental samples found no avian influenza (bird flu) virus.
A high-level meeting of senior officials from the Animal Services Department, Central Animal Disease Research Laboratory, Epidemiology and Disease Control Division and other agencies on Thursday decided to reopen the zoo.
'We have decided to reopen the zoo from Friday,' said Ganesh Koirala, spokesperson of the Central Zoo. 'Laboratory tests on environmental samples collected from the zoo premises have confirmed that the bird flu virus has not been detected.'
The zoo was closed from 5 Asad after bird flu was confirmed in rare birds including vultures, ibis, ducks, as well as wild cats and tigers kept in the zoo. The samples collected from the dead birds were confirmed to be infected with the avian influenza A (H5N1) virus.
Dozens of birds died due to the infection. The zoo administration was also accused of trying to cover up the incident, and a committee formed to investigate the incident is preparing its report.
According to Koirala, all necessary preparations have been completed for the safety of those visiting the zoo. The decision to reopen the zoo was made after the recommendation of an expert team. Earlier, various environmental samples collected from the zoo premises, as well as samples of dead crows, were tested repeatedly.
According to officials, the closure of the zoo has resulted in a revenue loss of about Rs 30 million. The zoo usually receives about 2,000 visitors daily on weekdays and up to 5,000 on public holidays.
The Central Zoo has about 1,300 animals of more than 100 species, including endangered species such as snow leopards and chimpanzees. The zoo also operates as a wildlife rescue and rehabilitation center.
Meanwhile, the Department of Animal Services has said that the spread of bird flu infection in Kathmandu, Lalitpur, Bhaktapur and Kavrepalanchok districts is gradually decreasing.
'No new infections have been confirmed since Wednesday,' said Dr. Mukul Upadhyay, senior veterinarian at the Department of Animal Services, 'this shows that the spread of the virus is decreasing.'
Recently, bird flu infection has been confirmed in 119 poultry farms in 3 districts of the Kathmandu Valley and Kavrepalanchok.
According to officials, more than 800,000 chickens and ducks have been destroyed since mid-April after the infection was confirmed. So far, bird flu has been confirmed in poultry farms in 11 districts of the country. About 1.3 million eggs and about 300,000 kilograms of feed have also been destroyed from infected farms.
Bird flu infection was first confirmed in Nepal in January 2009. Since then, infections have been seen almost every year, leading to the destruction of millions of birds and a large amount of poultry products. Many farmers have left the poultry business after not receiving adequate compensation.
The first human death from bird flu in Nepal was confirmed in 2019.
