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Diet chart revised at Corporation Zoo

Thursday, 28 February 2013 06:41 administrator
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The Hindu                    28.02.2013

Diet chart revised at Corporation Zoo

 
 
Fruits, ice cubes form part of summer diet.

Considering the increase in number of animals and going by the norms of the Central Zoological Authority (CZA) and diet chart of the Aringar Anna Zoological Park at Vandalur, the Coimbatore Corporation Zoo has revised its diet chart by incorporating food items that will help animals beat the summer heat.

A healthy habitat has resulted in captive breeding getting a boost at the Zoo and in the last one year alone there had been 85 new additions to the number of animals. The Corporation Zoo in an area of 4.5 acres at VOC Park as on date has nearly 42 species and over 600 in number. There are 23 species of birds, 8 reptiles and 11 mammals .

Ever since the Emu scam emerged, as many as 22 Emu birds have also been brought to the zoo, says K. Asokan, a Veterinarian and Director of the Corporation Zoo. Primary focus in revision of chart was in terms of the quantity of the feed and also bringing in some nutritious fruit varieties.

The total number of items on diet chart runs to 37, besides ice cubes for the monkeys and camel.

To ensure that the diet is balanced, the Zoo has included salt and mineral mixture as well as sun flower seeds, greens, fish, beef, poultry chicks and mixed poultry feed. Mr. Asokan said.

Last Updated on Thursday, 28 February 2013 06:44
 

Raising cattle may require licence from civic body

Thursday, 28 February 2013 06:29 administrator
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The Hindu                    28.02.2013

Raising cattle may require licence from civic body

Special Correspondent 

Rearing pigs and horses in city banned.

After much dithering, the Corporation Council has finally decided to impose a ban on rearing pigs and horses in the city. Raising cattle and other domestic animals would also be restricted and would require licence from the corporation henceforth.

The council on Wednesday approved the restrictions and the move to introduce a licensing system to restrict rearing cattle and other domestic animals in the city. Although the corporation had approved the by-laws for introducing the licensing system in November, its implementation was deferred after the council stalled the move at its last month when some members demanded that the areas where the ban would be imposed be clearly specified.

At an urgent meeting, the council gave its nod for a revised resolution listing out the places where rearing of goats and cows would be allowed in the city, provided the owners had licences.

In some places, there will be a ban on rearing domestic animals. Allowing the animals to roam in public places will be prohibited.

Rearing pigs and horses has been completely banned across the city. When some councillors raised objections to the ban in certain places, Commissioner V.P.Thandapani clarified that the councillors’ suggestions to add or delete specific areas would be incorporated. The proposed annual licence fee was also reduced to Rs.500 per head for cows and donkeys, and Rs.200 for goats.

Licences would be issued based on various conditions listed in the by-laws.

Each animal should carry a tag providing details of the owner, his/her address, and telephone numbers.

Animals found without such tags and those roaming on the streets would be impounded and, if unclaimed for three days, would be handed over to private maintenance agencies.

Animals without licence would be impounded. Raising the animals without licence and violating the rules would attract a penalty of Rs.400 per head of cow (Rs.500 for second time violation) apart from a maintenance fee of Rs.300 a day till the animal is retrieved by its owner.

For donkeys, the penalty would be Rs.300 (Rs.400 for second time violation) and the maintenance fee Rs.200 a day, and for goats Rs.200 and Rs.50 a day. Those failing to adhere to the provisions of the by-laws would be liable to be prosecuted under The Tamil Nadu Animals and Birds in Urban Areas (Control and Regulation) Act, 1997.

Each animal should carry a tag providing details of the owner, his/her address, and telephone numbers.

Last Updated on Thursday, 28 February 2013 06:31
 

Chennai corporation apathy kills at least one person every day

Wednesday, 27 February 2013 11:33 administrator
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The Times of India                     27.02.2013

Chennai corporation apathy kills at least one person every day

CHENNAI: Bureaucratic delays and apathy in Chennai corporation not only cause bumpy rides but also cost lives. According to data from the Chennai traffic police, the corporation could be responsible for at least one fatal accident every day.

In 2012, 32 people died in head-on collisions and 15 people due to poor lighting, according to city police records. Data also shows that the biggest victims on the road are pedestrians as they are involved in more than one-fourth of road accidents in the city.

Traffic police officers say that having medians would reduce fatal accidents. "Most accidents happen on roads that do not have medians. We shift barricades during peak hours to ensure that people do not travel on the wrong side," said a senior police officer attached to the traffic investigation wing.

Of the 448 major roads (on which buses ply) maintained by the corporation, only 95 have medians. Officials say they are not keen on constructing more medians because they eat in to the carriageway and limit design and traffic re-engineering possibilities. "Once we build a concrete median, it becomes difficult to redirect traffic or make the road one-way for a few hours or during emergencies," said a senior corporation official. "When we want to redesign the road or extend it, we will have to break the median and reconstruct it," he said.

Another way to avoid head-on collisions is to ensure drivers don't use high-beam lights and cross the speed limit. "Roads should have high medians to beat the problem of high beams," said the police officer.

Roads such as 4th Avenue in Besant Nagar are broad and do not have medians and have street lights on one side. "It's a nightmare to ride on this road. The speed breakers are badly designed and the barricades are kept in different pattern every day," said Pranav Ramani from Adyar.

The civic body has ordered 1.1 lakh new street lights to light up 2,750km. The new lights will be provided to 1,020 roads without street lights and streets that are poorly lit despite the presence of street lights. "There are roads where the street lights are too far apart leaving stretches of darkness in between, or places where there is a tube light on an electricity board pole which is not up to our standards. Those will be rectified and replaced," said an official.

Last Updated on Wednesday, 27 February 2013 11:38
 
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