Thrissur Zoological Park’s deer safari park construction inaugurated

Revenue Minister K. Rajan on Sunday inaugurated the construction of a Deer Safari Park at the Thrissur Zoological Park. He said the work on the park’s Pet Zoo and Virtual Zoo will commence within this month.

Speaking after laying the foundation stone, the Minister said the Pet Zoo will offer children a chance to interact closely with friendly animals, while the Virtual Zoo will provide a cutting-edge, Artificial intelligence (AI)-powered safari experience replicating wildlife encounters from four different countries. “This is not the usual goggle-based system. Visitors will be able to virtually travel, see and touch the animals they like, and enjoy an immersive 45-minute safari experience — all within a limited space,” he said. Facilities for the virtual experience will be inspected on Friday and necessary arrangements will be ensured.

The Minister added that construction of the zoological park is nearly complete, with only the cleaning of the park and arrival of animals remaining. Arrangements to bring 246 species of animals and birds from Karnataka are in the final stages, along with steps to import five bird species from abroad.

The inauguration ceremony, held at the park’s Orientation Centre, was presided over by Puthur grama panchayat president Mini Unnikrishnan, with Ollukkara block panchayat president K.R. Ravi as chief guest. Chief Conservator of Forests R. Adalarasan, park director B.N. Nagaraj, special officer K.J. Varghese presented a report.