HC asks that if other countries can maintain penguin parks, why can’t Mumbai?
The Bombay High Court on Friday warned the BMC that if it cannot show that it is taking proper care of the Humboldt penguins at Byculla zoo, the court will send them back to Seoul, South Korea, where the birds were bought from. However, the court also pointed out that several smaller countries have managed to maintain penguin parks, so there is no reason Mumbaikars should be deprived of a chance to view the birds at a similar facility here.
The HC was informed yesterday that the BMC still hasn’t fixed a date to open the penguin gallery for public viewing. By March 8, the authorities hope to shift the birds to the final enclosure from the quarantine area, where they have been held since July 26, but they still have not announced any plans to open the enclosure for public viewing.
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Meanwhile, a second petitioner has joined the present petitioner, advocate Advait Sethna, requesting that the penguins should not be shown to the public at all, and should instead be sent back to Seoul.
To this, Chief Justice Manjula Chellur and Justice Girish Kulkarni responded, “Why should be the Mumbaikars deprived of the penguins when several small countries have penguin parks?”
Like the last hearing, this time too, BMC counsel Anil Sakhare promised the court that they will take the best care of the seven penguins who remain after the death of female penguin Dory.
The court has adjourned the matter for two weeks.
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