Story/place-Goa,
AGENCIES | Mar 5, 2011, 12.58am IST
PANAJI: Goa's only zoo, a mini zoological park in the Bondla Wildlife Sanctuary, has posted a health growth in revenue collection with its rising popularity, especially among the students.Data released by the forest department has revealed that 2009-10 saw 87,747 tourists visiting the place, 50 km from here.
Students topped the number of visitors with 23,549 of them arriving in the zoo to have a glimpse of wild animals, birds and also a botanical garden in the sanctuary spread over an area of 8 km. Contrary to popular perception that foreigners visit Goa only to soak on the beaches, a total of 2,261 international tourists visited the place. The department said a revenue of 14.77 lakh was collected in 2009-10 in the form of different fees as against 11.70 lakh netted in 2008-09. The gate fee fetched 10.61 lakh, while renting of cottages and dormitories brought in 3.77 lakh. Money also came from elephant rides and the sale of plants. The zoo is undergoing an upgradation at a cost of 20 crore, most of which has come from the Central Zoo Authority (CZA), a senior department official said.The department officials said the popularity of the zoo shot up recently after a tiger, Rana, and tigress Sandhya were added to the inventory.
source-timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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