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Indian Express
4 days ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
Animals ‘missing' from Alipore Zoo: ‘Enquiry on, report expected in two weeks', Central Zoo Authority tells Calcutta HC
The Central Zoo Authority (CZA) on Wednesday informed Calcutta High Court that it has initiated an investigation into the Alipore Zoological Garden case. During the hearing of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) regarding several animals missing from the zoo, Additional Solicitor General Ashok Kumar Chakraborty, on behalf of the CZA, stated: 'An enquiry is on and a report is expected in two weeks. We are seeking time.' The Division Bench of Justice Sujoy Paul and Justice Smita Das De, noting the enquiry was on, posted the matter for hearing on September 1. In July, a three-member CZA team visited the zoo to carry out an audit and examine allegations of a gross mismatch in wildlife inventory, also checking records of animal transfers. The West Bengal Forest Department launched a separate probe. Meanwhile, zoo director Arun Mukherjee was transferred to the Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park in Darjeeling Hills, which authorities termed routine. City-based voluntary organisation SWAZON had filed a petition earlier that month accusing the zoo of mismanagement, with over 300 animals 'missing overnight' from records. The petition alleges that while the zoo had 672 animals at the end of 2023-24, the number dropped to 351 at the start of 2024-25 — a fall of 321 in one night. 'The unexplained vanishing of animals, including those classified as endangered, suggests either gross negligence or intentional suppression of facts. Neither the Central Zoo Authority, nor the West Bengal Zoo Authority (WBZA), nor the administration of the Alipore Zoo has issued any public statement, (or) filed any report addressing these discrepancies. Given that the CZA disburses funds to the WBZA for the management of zoos, and that both are publicly funded bodies, these unexplained disappearances of animals demand immediate audit and investigation,' the petition read. It cites alleged inconsistencies: on March 3, 2011, the zoo had 1,452 animals, which allegedly dwindled to 672 by March 31, 2024. 'Between March 31, 2017 (1,186 animals) and April 1, 2017 (910 animals), 276 animals were unaccounted for overnight. The West Bengal Zoo Authority's figures showed a discrepancy of 302 animals in the same period. In 2022, the closing stock of endangered animals was 190, but the opening stock on April 1, 2022 was 131 — a difference of 59 endangered animals with no explanation,' the petition further read.
United News of India
18-06-2025
- Politics
- United News of India
Mamata demands that BJP-led Centre release all MNREGA pending dues
Kolkata, June 18 (UNI) As the Calcutta High Court on Wednesday directed the Central Government to resume the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme in West Bengal from August 1, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee demanded that the BJP-led government release all pending dues that have been withheld for the past four years. 'The court has ordered that work must resume from August. But for four years, no work was done, no money was released. Our leaders staged protests in Delhi, and cases were filed against them. Central ministers didn't even meet them. We were humiliated in many ways,' the chief minister said in a press conference at Nabanna on Wednesday. 'We paid the workers from state funds. That money must be returned. The Centre must calculate the dues from the day the scheme was stopped and pay accordingly. Why was our share of the money given to other states? That is a crime,' she added. The central government which funds the scheme entirely had suspended MGNREGA funding to West Bengal in March 2022, citing large-scale misappropriation. West Bengal received Rs 7,507.80 crore under MGNREGA in the 2021–22 financial year. However, since then, no funds have been disbursed. The Centre had justified its actions by citing inconsistencies found in 31 out of 63 inspected worksites, according to RTI replies. 'Funds for the 100-day work scheme were not provided. People were made to work, but no payment was given. Who will pay them? We did—from the state government's own resources, through the 'Karmashree' scheme. And now they've come to celebrate 'Bangla Diwas'—those who have constantly insulted and deprived Bengal.' 'We will review this petition. You are sending teams to Bengal, but first, release the funds. It has been four years, and not a single rupee has been given. This is public money,' she said. The chief minister was referring to a four-member verification committee comprising representatives from the Central and State Governments, along with officials from the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) and the Accountant General. In April 2025, the committee reported that Rs 24 crore had been recovered from the districts under investigation. Additional Solicitor General Ashok Kumar Chakraborty, representing the Centre, said in the court that central investigation teams uncovered irregularities in districts like Hooghly, East Bardhaman, Malda, and Darjeeling, involving embezzlement of over Rs 50 crores. A broader audit revealed anomalies amounting to Rs 613 crores, of which Rs 2.1 crores had been recovered by the state as of 2024. However, the court observed that the grievances of genuine workers cannot be ignored on account of administrative or political concerns marking a major development in the long-standing deadlock over the rural employment programme. 'All the allegations are from before 2022. You are free to take any action regarding those. But the project must be started now,' Chief Justice Sivagnanam observed in response during the hearing. The court further clarified that MGNREGA, as legislated, does not allow for its indefinite suspension even in the face of corruption charges, and that any such action violates the spirit of the Act. UNI XC RN
