Last such birth occurred 14 years ago; big cats are being constantly monitored via CCTV cameras
The cub born to the lioness Manasi (also inset) at the Sanjay Gandhi National Park. Pics/SGNP
Manasi, a captive lioness at Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), delivered a cub on Thursday night, an occurrence that was last witnessed fourteen years ago. Dr V Clement Ben, additional principal chief conservator forest, Western Wildlife Region, said, “Manasi gave birth to a healthy and active cub at 9.40 pm. The lioness began nursing the newborn at 2.45 am on Friday.”
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Assistant Conservator of Forest (ACF) Sudhir Sonawale, Range Forest Officer Niket Shinde and SGNP Veterinary Officer Dr Vinaya Jangle are also keeping a close watch on the lioness and the cub. Dr Jangle told mid-day that a den had been specially made for the lioness so that it could deliver the cub safely. The big cats are being monitored around the clock via CCTV cameras.
“Manasi is 4.4 years old. After a gap of 14 years, an Asiatic lion has been born at SGNP and we are even happier as the birth of the cub coincides with SGNP’s foundation day,” said Dr Jangle. SGNP Director G Mallikarjun told mid-day that if everything goes as planned, the national park, which was established in 1969, might get a pair of lions.
In September 2022, the then Maharashtra Forest Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar met with his Gujarat counterpart Jagdish Vishwakarma in Ahmedabad and discussed the exchange of two Asiatic lions from Sakkarbaug Zoological Park (SZP) in Junagadh for a pair of captive tigers from the SGNP. They decided to seek joint approval from the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) for the same.
In October of that year, Ravindra, the oldest captive lion at SGNP died due to age-related disease and in the last week of the following month, a pair of captive breeding lions—Manas and Manasi— arrived at the national park from Sakkarbaug Zoological Park in Junagadh, Gujarat.
SGNP had approached the Telangana Forest Department for a pair of lions from Nehru Zoological Park in Hyderabad, in September 2020. However, there was no development, as the Telangana Forest Department wanted lions in exchange for lions.
The captive lion safari was started in SGNP in 1975-76, and it has been an important tourist attraction, helping to generate revenue for the park. SGNP started a captive tiger and lion safari in the 1990s and it has been an important tourist attraction ever since. During the safari, visitors are ferried in mini-buses into an area that is fenced from all sides.
Earlier, SGNP’s lions were born to Asian and African species rescued from circuses. As the CZA had forbidden mating between Asian and African lions in captivity, the population of the captive lions in the SGNP saw a decline.
4.4 years
Lioness’ age
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